HONG KONG: The UN human rights chief on Saturday called for an independent probe into the violence during anti-government protests in Hong Kong, saying the injuries were alarming.
Two teenage protesters were shot while a journalist was permanently blinded in one eye in the past week during the worst outbreak of violence after four months of unrest in the city.
“We are troubled by the high levels of violence associated with some demonstrations ... and also alarmed by the injuries to the police and protesters, including journalists and protesters shot by law enforcement officers,” UN High Commissioner Michelle Bachelet told a media conference in the Malaysian capital.
Hong Kong should immediately carry out an “effective, prompt, independent and impartial investigation” into acts of violence including the shootings, Bachelet said, adding that those responsible must face due process.
Hong Kong authorities imposed a ban on facemasks on Saturday, a day after embattled leader Carrie Lam invoked colonial-era emergency powers in a bid to stem the violence.
In response to the ban, Bachelet said facemasks should not be used to provoke violence but warned Hong Kong against using the ban to target particular groups or curtail the right to freedom of assembly.
Masked pro-democracy protesters marched through Hong Kong in defiance of the ban on face coverings as much of the city ground to a halt, with the subway suspended and many shops shuttered following another night of violence.
Thousands of protesters staged unsanctioned marches and flashmob protests at multiple locations.
The latest acts of resistance came after a night of widespread chaos as hardcore protesters trashed dozens of subway stations, vandalized shops, set fires and blocked roads.
Throughout the afternoon and evening, crowds gathered in masks, most of them moderates without the helmets and body armor worn by more radical protesters.
They formed human chains and chanted slogans or sang protest songs.
Hong Kong has been battered by four months of increasingly violent pro-democracy protests.
The rallies were ignited by a now-scrapped plan to allow extraditions to the mainland, which fueled fears of an erosion of liberties promised under the 50-year “one country, two systems” model China agreed ahead of the 1997 handover by Britain.
After Beijing and local leaders took a hard line, the demonstrations snowballed into a wider movement calling for more democratic freedoms and police accountability.
Lam has refused major concessions but struggled to come up with any political solution, leaving police and demonstrators to fight increasingly violent battles as the city tips into recession.
