Pro-democracy protester waves Indian flag in Hong Kong

Hong Kong: Hong Kong is experiencing waves of protests against the Chinese government. Laurel Chor, Photographer, and Journalist shared a few photographs and videos of the latest protests in a Tweet thread. In the visuals, one man caught everyone’s eyes, as he was sporting an Indian flag. When he was asked why he was wearing an Indian flag, he said, “Because India is fighting China. So India is my friend!” Laurel mentioned in the tweet that the man was shouting “STAND WITH INDIA!” and the crowd was applauding him.

On China’s national day, many Hong Kong nationals came out on the roads to raise their voice against the Chinese government. The pro-democracy protesters have been on streets on and off since last year after China passed Hong Kong’s Extradition Bill to allow Hong Kong to detain and transfer people wanted in territories and countries that do not have formal agreements for extradition. It includes Taiwan and the Chinese mainland.

“Why are you wearing an Indian flag?”
“Because India is fighting China. So India is my friend!”

He is now holding the flag above his head, shouting “STAND WITH INDIA! 印度加油!” The crowd is applauding him. pic.twitter.com/UoKCip0X8K

— Laurel Chor (@laurelchor) October 1, 2020

As thousands of people came onto the streets of Hong Kong, chanting slogans like “Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of our Times”, the police came forward to thwart the protests. Thousands of policemen arrived on the streets, stopping and searching people. According to reports, the police cordoned off dozens of people, lined them up against the wall, handcuffed them and marched them away.

The police said that slogans demanding to liberate Hong Kong was tantamount to inciting people to “commit secession”, and a possible breach of the national security law.

The Civil Human Rights Front, a pro-democracy group that organized million-person marches last year, had asked Hong Kong police for authorization to hold a rally on National Day. But its application was rejected, citing the Coronavirus pandemic and violence at previous rallies.

Last year, the Hong Kong police for the first time fired shot at a young protester. Several rounds of tear gas were also shot to disperse the crowd during the National Day protests.