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Why Hong Kong's 'water revolution' is spiralling out of control

Name: Why Hong Kong's 'water revolution' is spiralling out of control
Uploaded: 2019-09-01T07:58:43.659Z
Duration: 3 min 4 s
Channel: Financial Times
Description: FT Asia editor Jamil Anderlini reports from the anti-government protests

The FT's Asia editor Jamil Anderlini reports from anti-government protests where demonstrators have started to throw Molotov cocktails and fire BB guns in response to the police's use of water cannon, tear gas and rubber bullets

September 1, 2019

Filmed and produced by Tom Griggs. Additional footage by Reuters

Transcript

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We're in the middle of central Hong Kong. This is the frontline where most of the more radical protesters have already arrived. This entire protest is completely illegal.

On Friday, the police in Hong Kong arrested many of the people they identify as leaders of the youth movement - of the protest movement - here. Unfortunately for them, it hasn't made any difference.

Now, the point that the authorities don't seem to believe or to comprehend is that this really does appear to be a leaderless movement.

The protests here in Hong Kong have completely spiralled out of control. We're in the middle of one of the main shopping districts, Wan Chai, and the protesters have built a barricade and set it on fire. It's now blazing out of control, and the fire department is trying to get to it, but they're being blocked by some of the crowd. With scenes like this, it's almost unthinkable that Beijing won't want to intervene at some point.