Over 5,000 protesters at Hong Kong airport, says police

Pro-democracy protesters holds placards against the police brutality and the controversial extradition bill at Hong Kong’s international airport on August 12, 2019. – Hong Kong airport authorities cancelled all remaining departing and arriving flights at the major travel hub on August 12, after thousands of protesters entered the arrivals hall to stage a demonstration. (Photo by Manan VATSYAYANA / AFP)

HONG KONG — More than 5,000 protesters gathered at Hong Kong airport on Monday, police said, as authorities canceled all the day’s remaining flights in and out of the busy international transport hub.

“The information I got before we came in was that in the airport passenger terminal building there are over 5,000 protesters,” said Kong Wing-cheung, senior superintendent of the police public relations branch, at a press conference.

Kong said airport authorities had allowed demonstrators to gather in the arrivals halls – although the protest was not granted a permit from police – but accused the activists of blocking departures.

“Some of the protesters had gone into the departures hall, causing some passengers to be unable to enter the restricted area to exercise their personal freedom, which is to board their flight,” he said.

Pro-democracy activists staged three days of sit-ins at the airport from Friday, but the protests were significantly smaller than Monday’s which followed a weekend of often violent confrontations between police and demonstrators across the city. /kga