Hong Kong police have refuted what they called rumors that they were engaging the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) under the guise of law enforcement to confront protesters who continue to demand the complete withdrawal of the city's extradition bill, the Hong Kong government said in a statement on Tuesday
BEIJING (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 06th August, 2019) Hong Kong police have refuted what they called rumors that they were engaging the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) under the guise of law enforcement to confront protesters who continue to demand the complete withdrawal of the city's extradition bill, the Hong Kong government said in a statement on Tuesday.Rumors that the PLA was guarding a number of premises in Hong Kong surfaced after protesters vandalized the Chinese government secretariat building. The Hong Kong government has already rejected this information.
"Police today dismissed rumours that the People's Liberation Army has been deployed as Hong Kong Police, saying the rumours are totally unfounded," the statement read.
Last Thursday, PLA Commander Chen Daoxiang said that the army was prepared to ensure stability and security in Hong Kong.
Yet another rally swept Hong Kong on Monday as thousands of protesters almost completely blocked the city's traffic and engaged in violent clashes with law enforcement. Police had to use tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse demonstrators. As many as 148 people were detained on charges of unlawful assembly, riot, assault of police officers and possession of weapons.
Hong Kong is in its third month of public unrest. People took to the streets in early June to protest against the adoption of a bill that would allow Hong Kong to extradite suspects to jurisdictions with which it did not previously have an extradition agreement, including mainland China. Even though the government announced it was suspending the bill, people are demanding that it be withdrawn completely.
