At around 5pm on Jan. 26, five people were spotted protesting out the Ministry of Education (MOE)'s headquarters at Buona Vista.
Had no permit
The police confirmed in a press release on the same night that three of the protesters, aged between 19 and 32, have been arrested the same day.
Police said that the trio has been arrested for "allegedly taking part in a public assembly without a permit".
They were holding on to placards that wrote:
- "#FIX SCHOOLS NOT STUDENTS"
- "WHY ARE WE NOT IN YOUR SEX ED"
- "HOW CAN WE GET A’s WHEN YOUR CARE FOR US IS AN F"
- "trans students will NOT be erased"
- "trans students deserve access to HEALTHCARE & SUPPORT"
Police stated that the group did not have a police permit to carry out the public assembly.
Upon police's arrival, only three individuals remained.
Ignored warning
The police warned them to cease their activities as they were liable for offence under the Public Order Act.
However, police said that the protesters ignored the warning and continued with their activities.
The group was then issued with a "move-on" direction under Section 36 of the Public Order Act, and told that they would be arrested if they failed to adhere to the direction.
The police statement added,
"The three refused to comply despite the police's repeated warnings, and were arrested under the Public Order Act at around 5:35pm. Five placards, two multi-coloured flags and a blue bag were seized in relation to the case."
The three individuals have since been released on bail at about 10pm on Jan. 26.
Police investigations are ongoing.
Top images from Kirsten Han/Twitter.