HK may punish ringleaders

45 protesters arrested as police clear barricades

Hong Kong police on Wednesday arrested dozens of protesters as they cleared a main road near the government headquarters, as legislators and lawyers say that protest leaders may face legal responsibility for inciting the Hong Kong public to join the illegal protests.

Clashes broke out Tuesday evening when protesters charged the police cordon in Lung Wo Road tunnel, near the main protest site in Admiralty, outside the offices of the city's chief executive. They had blocked the tunnel using concrete slabs and manhole covers.

A total of 45 protesters were arrested on charges of illegal assembly on Wednesday morning. The police said five officers were injured during the scuffle, with one sustaining a broken arm after being pushed by protesters, while another's eye was hurt when he was attacked by protesters with an umbrella.

Police have also launched an investigation into an alleged beating early Wednesday by a group of plain-clothes officers of Civic Party member Ken Tsang Kin-chiu, which has been described by pan-democrat lawmakers as an illegal punishment. The officers involved have been reassigned pending investigation.

As the protest drags on, leaders of the movement may be faced with legal action.

"The initiators may face legal charges for inciting and instigating the Hong Kong people to engage in illegal activities," Regina Ip Lau Suk-yee, a Hong Kong legislator and the city's former secretary for security, told the Global Times.

Ip cited the example of student leader Joshua Wong Chi-fung, who led about 100 student protesters to "occupy" a courtyard in front of the government headquarters on September 26 as a case that could bring him criminal charges.

Charges leveled against protesters are less likely, as Ip believes it would require obvious and direct evidence of them being incited by the protest leaders.

Stanley Chan Wing-leung, a criminal defense lawyer and former senior inspector in the Hong Kong police, agreed with Ip.

"I believe only the initiators and organizers [of the protest] will face legal charges so as to serve as a warning [against illegal activities]. Participants are less likely to be prosecuted," Chan told the Global Times.

Lai Tung-kwok, Hong Kong's secretary for security, told a Legislative Council meeting on Wednesday that "civil disobedience" cannot be the protesters' excuse for their illegal behavior.

The Hong Kong Bar Association on October 8 warned in a statement that "civil disobedience" is not a defense against a criminal charge.

As the protests demanding "genuine" democracy entered the 18th day, Hong Kong society has seen increasing opposition against the Occupy movement that has paralyzed major parts of the city and harmed livelihoods.

"We have collected over 100 complaints from owners and staff of small retail businesses in Mong Kok and Causeway Bay and we are going to file a lawsuit at the Small Claims Tribunal against the Occupy leaders for the movement harming their business operations," Leticia Lee See-yin, a co-founder of anti-Occupy group the Blue Ribbon Movement, told the Global Times.

Lee said these shop owners have expressed their frustration and worries toward the sustainability of their businesses in the shadow of the ongoing Occupy movement.

"Two of the shop owners in Mong Kok are going to close their businesses because they have lost most of the customers, who were made up mainly of Chinese mainland tourists," said Lee.

Mong Kok, a popular shopping district, was one of the main areas targeted by the Occupy protesters.

A tour agency and a restaurant chain earlier announced their plan to sue Occupy Central co-founder Benny Tai Yiu-ting for loss of business during the recent protests.

Government operations have also been affected. The chief executive's question and answer session at the Legislative Council set for Thursday was rescheduled after the outbreak of violence on Tuesday and over security concerns that the demonstrators are still gathering outside the meeting venue in the government headquarters.

The ongoing protests may also hurt the city's global financial standing. Global rating agency Moody's warned in September that the prolonged period of demonstrations in Hong Kong could negatively affect the city's economic growth and diminished confidence could start to erode Hong Kong's standing as a global financial center.

The statement from Moody's echoes similar concerns made by HSBC in July which downgraded Hong Kong's investment outlook over the ongoing crisis.

The prolonged protests have also allegedly been manipulated by foreign powers.

China's foreign ministry on Wednesday renewed warnings to the UK to immediately stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs.

The warning came as a response to a written statement submitted to the British parliament by Hugo Swire, a minister of state with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the British government, over the Hong Kong protests.