HONG KONG -- For the past two and a half weeks, the barricades that protesters have used to block several main traffic arteries in this bustling metropolis have been, well, fairly unexciting. They consisted mainly of metal railings held together with tough plastic strips, and of course, plenty of umbrellas.
All that changed on Monday. The pro-democracy demonstrators who have been camping out here since late September were incensed when the police (and, separately, anti-democracy demonstrators whom many here believe to be paid thugs) attempted to remove some of their barricades.
There were nasty and noisy scuffles during the afternoon as the the pro and anti protesters clashed on Queensway, a road that is normally a conduit for many bus routes and the city's famous double-decker tram.
The police, who had moved in during the early hours of the morning, catching the protesters unaware, used little force and no tear gas. (They apparently recognize that the use of tear gas and pepper spray backfired last month, as it only angered many Hong Kongers and caused them to turn out in greater numbers.)
Instead, the police, arguing that they wanted to ease the considerable traffic congestion in central Hong Kong, said they would remove only some barriers and not attempt to clear the core of the protest site.
Hong Kong police statement on operation to remove some protester barricades. Urges protesters to leave #OccupyCentral pic.twitter.com/kz98jJFaZJ— Katy Lee 李玥缇 (@kjalee) October 13, 2014
Still, even that -- and the bullying intervention of masked thugs on Queensway -- was enough to fan the anger and solidarity of the pro-democracy camp once again.
“We're so angry that the government won't even talk to us,” said Vin Chan, a young art teacher and fashion designer who has joined the demonstrations every day since they started. On Monday, he was sitting quietly on a footbridge over the main protest site, sketching politically charged images of the past two weeks' events. “It seems that they keep doing things that make people angry -- and so people come again and again.”
Loading Big shouty standoff at Queensway barricades now. HK View on Instagram@-webkit-keyframes"dkaXkpbBxI"{ 0%{opacity:0.5;} 50%{opacity:1;} 100%{opacity:0.5;} } @keyframes"dkaXkpbBxI"{ 0%{opacity:0.5;} 50%{opacity:1;} 100%{opacity:0.5;} }
By late evening, many more pro-democracy supporters had turned up again, and they were repairing and strengthening their damaged barriers.
And boy, they were inventive.
Everything that looks remotely solid appears to have gone into the new barricades on Queenway and other nearby streets. The old railings have been joined by many bamboo poles (which are commonly used as scaffolding poles here). There are packing crates, chairs and garbage cans -- even bus stop signs.
Loading HK barricades. They are throwing everything they can find at them. Why not a chair or 2, too? View on Instagram@-webkit-keyframes"dkaXkpbBxI"{ 0%{opacity:0.5;} 50%{opacity:1;} 100%{opacity:0.5;} } @keyframes"dkaXkpbBxI"{ 0%{opacity:0.5;} 50%{opacity:1;} 100%{opacity:0.5;} }
Loading The new barricade outside Pacific Place, HK. Includes bus stop sign. View on Instagram@-webkit-keyframes"dkaXkpbBxI"{ 0%{opacity:0.5;} 50%{opacity:1;} 100%{opacity:0.5;} } @keyframes"dkaXkpbBxI"{ 0%{opacity:0.5;} 50%{opacity:1;} 100%{opacity:0.5;} }
“We want to make them really strong, in case the police come back in the morning,” said one masked young man who was helping build one of the obstacles and did not want to be named or photographed for fear of reprisal.
Many of the people there were young students, who are the main driving force behind the calls for free elections and the resignation of the unpopular Hong Kong leader, Leung Chun-ying.
Loading Bamboo poles and litter bins. Barricades in HK. Protesters so angry. But still everso polite. View on Instagram@-webkit-keyframes"dkaXkpbBxI"{ 0%{opacity:0.5;} 50%{opacity:1;} 100%{opacity:0.5;} } @keyframes"dkaXkpbBxI"{ 0%{opacity:0.5;} 50%{opacity:1;} 100%{opacity:0.5;} }
But there were also office workers, like Sherman Chan, 50, who works for an international bank and had turned up to show his support during the evening. And at one of the new barricades, professional bamboo scaffolders were at work not long before midnight, constructing an intricate and solid nest of sturdy bamboo poles.
How all this will end is anyone's guess. The Hong Kong demonstrators have kept surprising many here with their determination. Monday's events have only seemed to reinforce their willpower.
On the government side, Hong Kong has little leeway to compromise on the really big issue -- free elections. Beijing, which increasingly calls the shots here, fears that any concessions could encourage calls for greater rights in other parts of the country.
In an interview with a local TV station on Sunday, Leung pretty much spelled that out. The students, he said, had “almost zero chance” of getting Beijing to change its restrictive framework for Hong Kong's next elections in 2017.
And so the stage is set for more confrontation.
The protesters are getting tired. They admit that. But they are as determined as ever, equipped with tents, mattresses and school desks -- and now, more solid barricades.