Hong Kong university siege winds down as hunt for protesters comes up empty
HONG KONG: As the final searches for any protesters still hiding in Hong Kong's Polytechnic University came up empty on Wednesday (Nov 27), academic authorities prepared for the clean up following a near two-week siege of the campus by riot police.
Police still guarded the perimeter as a security team prepared to scour the maze of buildings for a second day. Polytechnic University Executive Vice President Dr Miranda Lou said no-one had been found so far.
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READ: Commentary: Hong Kong campus siege widens split between moderates, radicals
"We hope we can re-open the school soon to start our renovation work and reduce the impact on our students and our research projects," said Lou.
The red-brick university on Kowloon peninsula was turned into a battleground in mid-November when protesters barricaded themselves inside and clashed with riot police in a hail of petrol bombs, water cannon and tear gas. About 1,100 people were arrested last week, some while trying to escape.
The campus was the last of five that protesters had occupied to use as bases from which to disrupt the city, blocking the nearby Cross-Harbour Tunnel linking Kowloon to Hong Kong Island and other arteries.
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The protesters had blocked the tunnel's mouth, smashed toll booths, lit fires, and cemented bricks to the road, but it was reopened early on Wednesday, and Hong Kong television showed a steady flow of vehicles surging through.
Hong Kong authorities hope that a lull in clashes over the weekend during local elections, where pro-democracy candidates scored a landslide victory, can translate into more calm after nearly six months of turmoil.
Chinese authorities reiterated a need "to stop the violence and restore order" after the election.
Reuters also reported that China's leaders had set up a crisis command centre in the Chinese tech hub of Shenzhen, just across the border from Hong Kong, to deal with protests that have become the biggest populist challenge since China's leader Xi Jinping came to power in 2012.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs' Office in Hong Kong called the report "false", without elaborating, in a statement posted on its website Tuesday. "No matter how the situation in Hong Kong changes, the Chinese government's determination to safeguard national sovereignty, security, and development interests is unwavering," it said.
Despite the euphoria among protesters over the electoral victory, in whiRead More – Source
