70-year-old man 2nd fatality in HK riots
Credit to Author: Agence France-Presse| Date: Fri, 15 Nov 2019 16:16:25 +0000
China’s President Xi Jinping has called for an end to violence in Hong Kong, in strongly worded comments that coincide with the second protest related death in a week in the semi-autonomous city.
Speaking on the sidelines of the Brics summit in Brazil on Thursday, Xi said that ongoing “radical” protests had trampled the city’s rule of law and that “stopping the violence and restoring order” was Hong Kong’s most “urgent task.”
The Asian financial hub has been gripped by a renewed spate of violent unrest in recent days, following the death of a 22-year-old student, who fell near the scene of demonstrations last Friday. Protesters have clashed with riot police at multiple locations, paralyzing much of the territory and forcing citywide school cancellations.
In his remarks on Thursday, Xi pledged his support for the city’s police authorities and its embattled leader Carrie Lam “in severely punishing the violent criminals in accordance with the law.”
The rare comments by Xi came just hours before a 70-year-old man, who was struck by a brick during clashes between protesters and their opponents died of his injuries.
The unidentified elderly man died late on Thursday night at the city’s Prince of Wales Hospital, a spokesperson confirmed.
According to police, the man was on a lunch break from his job as a cleaner on Wednesday when he voluntarily began clearing the road of bricks thrown during demonstrations.
Video of the alleged incident provided by police shows protesters and government supporters hurling bricks at one another before a man falls to the ground.
The death of the man is likely to further raise tensions in the protest-wracked city. On Friday office workers dressed in smart business attire took to the streets for the fifth day in a row in central district, chanting “five demands, not one less.”
They were joined by large lunch time protests in the districts of Wong Chuk Hang and Tai Koo.
The number of protest related injuries has risen sharply in recent days, with more than 67 people admitted to hospital across the territory as of Wednesday.
AFP