HONG KONG, China — A huge New Year's Day pro-democracy rally in Hong Kong ended in mass arrests and clashes between police and hardcore protesters, as demonstrators sought to carry their movement's momentum into 2020. The unrest in Hong Kong was sparked last year by a proposal to allow extraditions to mainland China. Activists have accused the police of brutality and rights violations, while city authorities — and the central government in Beijing — have accused pro-democracy protesters of rioting. Hong Kong people have been pushed to a hopeless situation. Under the terms of the 1997 handover, Hong Kong enjoys unique freedoms unseen on the mainland, but fears have increased in recent years that they are being chipped away as Beijing exerts more control over the territory.

Source: Philippine Star January 02, 2020 01:07 UTC