HK protests paralyze airport
Credit to Author: The Manila Times| Date: Mon, 05 Aug 2019 16:16:22 +0000
HONG Kong: Pro-democracy protesters in this island-state are close to creating a “very dangerous situation,” the city’s leader warned Monday as train travel and at least 100 international flights in the global financial hub were thrown into chaos.
Most of those affected are connecting flights to Europe’s busiest airports such as Charles de Gaulle in Paris, Gatwick in London, Madrid-Barajas in Madrid and Amsterdam Schipol in Amsterdam.
The peak-hour efforts to lock down Hong Kong’s transport sector on Monday morning followed two months of unprecedented and often violent unrest, fuelled by demands for greater democracy in the semi-autonomous Chinese city.
With commuters unable to get to work and international travellers facing delays, chief executive Carrie Lam held a press conference to warn protesters and signal authorities would not buckle under the growing pressure.
“[They] have seriously undermined Hong Kong’s law and order and are pushing our city, the city that we all love and many of us helped to build, to the verge of a very dangerous situation,” Lam said.
She later referenced chants by protesters for a “revolution”, describing this as a challenge to the “one country, two systems” framework, under which Hong Kong has been ruled since it returned from British to Chinese rule in 1997.
“I dare say they are trying to destroy Hong Kong,” Lam said. She spoke shortly after activists descended on key subway stations during the morning rush hour, deliberately keeping open doors to stop trains departing, crippling multiple lines and triggering occasional scuffles.
More than 100 flights at the city’s airport — one of the world’s busiest — were also listed as canceled on Monday morning. Many disrupted flights were with Cathay Pacific.
The carrier did not give a reason for the cancellations, but its flight attendants union confirmed some of its members had walked out.
“Over the last 50 days, the government has been ignoring the demands of the people and using only police force to try to suppress voices, causing countless Hong Kong people to despair,” the union said in a statement on its Facebook page.
Some key roads were also blockaded, causing traffic gridlock, as the protesters urged a general strike across the city.
Lam also maintained that she had no plans to resign in the face of a turbulent pro-democracy movement that held a general strike Monday, leading to more than 100 flight cancellations and major traffic disruptions.
The semi-autonomous Chinese city is on “the verge of a very dangerous situation,” said Lam, who said current protests were operating with “ulterior motives” that threaten Hong Kong’s prosperity and security.
“I don’t think at this point in time, resignation of myself or some of my colleagues would provide a better solution,” the Chief Executive said at a news conference.
Protesters snarled the morning rush hour by blocking train and platform doors, preventing subway and commuter rail trains from leaving their stations.
After demonstrators in face masks refused to move from train entry points in several stations, and commuters found themselves stranded on crowded platforms and some required medical attention.
More than 100 flights have been canceled out of Hong Kong after a large number of airport employees called in sick in apparent participation in the general strike, Hong Kong media reported.
Public broadcaster Radio Television Hong Kong said Cathay Pacific and other domestic carriers, such as Hong Kong Airlines, were the most affected. Airport express train service was also suspended.
“Too much. Why do they have to create trouble for people not involved in their cause?” said 52-year-old John Chan, whose flight to Singapore was canceled. “Hong Kong is sinking. The government, police and protest people have to stop fighting and give us a break.”
AP/AFP