About Hong Kong Riot Police Detain Protesters at Protest Against Chinese Traders

Riot police detain protesters during a demonstration in Hong Kong, Sunday, January 5. Scuffles erupted between police and protesters in Hong Kong on Sunday, January 5, with dozens of arrests made, after thousands marched near the border, shouting pro-democracy slogans and venting their anger at mainland Chinese traders. The demonstrators in Sheung Shui took aim at so-called "parallel traders" from China who buy vast amounts of duty free goods in Hong Kong and take them back to the mainland to sell at a profit. Locals say it pushes up prices, overcrowds neighborhoods and adds to growing tensions between Hong Kong residents and mainland Chinese. Organizers estimated 10,000 people took part in the march, while police estimated a crowd of 2,500 at its peak. After the march ended, protesters dressed in black and wearing face masks remained in the area despite calls from organizers to disperse immediately. At one point, riot police stormed through, hitting protesters with batons and using pepper spray. It was unclear what triggered their intervention. Protests erupted in Hong Kong in June over the local government's plans to allow some criminal suspects to be extradited to the Chinese mainland. Hong Kong withdrew the bill in September, but the street protests have continued, with demonstrators fearing an erosion of Hong Kong's democracy and autonomy, nearly 30 years before the ex-British colony's "special status" expires. (REUTERS/VOA)