Hong Kong Police Allow First Protest in Years

Hong Kong police allowed a small protest march today, Sunday, under strict restrictions, marking one of the first approved demonstrations since the comprehensive national security law was enacted in 2020. Authorities requested demonstrators to wear numbered armbands and prohibited them from using masks while closely monitoring their protest against a proposed land reclamation and waste management project. Participants chanted slogans against the project as they marched in the rain, holding placards in the eastern area of the Tsuen Kwan O district where the project is set to be built. Some criticized the restrictions on their protest, which included a maximum of 100 people according to a seven-page letter from the police to the organizers. The police granted the organizers a "no objection" letter for the protest, provided that they ensured no national security laws would be violated. Organizers stated that up to 50 people participated in the first protest permitted by the city’s police in several years. The mini-constitution of Hong Kong guarantees the right to public assembly.