In pictures: Hong Kong police clear last activist camp
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Two and a half months after its start, the pro-democracy movement in Hong Kong came to an end on Thursday when authorities dismantled the protestor’s main camp site, located near the government’s headquarters. Protesters and witnesses took pictures and shared them widely across social media.
Authorities dismantled tents at the pro-democracy camp in the Admiralty neighbourhood after the area was evacuated on Thursday, December 11. Photo : @TranslateHK
Hong Kong police dismantled the country's pro-democracy movement camp on Thursday after ten weeks of protests. Demonstrators and witnesses took pictures and shared them widely across social media.
The police had warned protesters, who were calling for free elections and universal suffrage in Hong Kong, that the camp site would be cleared starting Thursday morning. True to their word, the authorities dismantled innumerable tents, information stands and art pieces created by activists at the site near the government's headquarters.
Authorities clearing the last remnants of the camp. Photo : @NatashaKhan
Police dismantle the camp. Photo : @Phila_Siu
The remains of the campsite. Photo : @TranslateHK
The protest, true to its non-violent ideals, ended in relative calm. This was probably also due to the fact that the protest— which, at one point, included more than 7000 demonstrators — had clearly lost steam after 75 days. Community support also waned as the continued blockades negatively affected economic activity and aroused the ire of local retailers.
However, many demonstrators did stay until the bitter end when authorities were forced to arrest them.
Workers’ rights activist Lee Cheuk-yan was one of the last protesters to leave. Photo : @Phila_Siu
One activist refuses to leave. Photo : @TranslateHK
Once the last activists were evacuated, the site was cleaned before being re-opened to traffic.
The former campsite area is cleaned. Photo : @TranslateHK
Activists launched the movement, nicknamed both "Occupy Central", in reference to other Occupy movements across the world, and the "Umbrella Revolt", in reference to the umbrellas used by activists to protect themselves from tear gas. Their aims were to secure free elections and universal suffrage in the election of the chief executive of the former British colony that became an “autonomous region” in 1997.
Even after they had been evacuated from their campsite, many of the activists vowed to return and keep fighting for their goals.
Photo : @tomgrundy