Other witnesses, as well as the management of Yoho Mall, which is linked to the station, said they tried to call but could not get through to police. The force explained later that its New Territories North call center was overwhelmed by hundreds of emergency calls between 10pm and midnight that day. Responding to criticism of the force, then police commissioner Stephen Lo Wai-chung said two officers arrived at the station at 10.52pm, seven minutes after they received a report about the violence, but they called for reinforcements when they realized that they did not have enough protective gear. The force was mocked when a photograph showing two officers walking away from the scene of violence and chaos was shared widely.
A police source defended the officers’ actions, saying several weeks of mass rallies and protest violence had put a serious strain on the force’s manpower and resources. To deal with that Sunday’s mass march on Hong Kong Island, he said, all five police regions had to send manpower to help. He said there was a series of emergencies happening in Yuen Long at the same time that evening, and the district police did not have the resources to deal with them all. When violence broke out at the train station, officers from the Emergency Unit, whose vehicles are equipped with anti-riot gear, were dealing with other incidents such as fights, assaults and a fire in the district. More than 500 officers from a regional response contingent, who were in the midst of clearing protesters in Sheung Wan, Hong Kong Island, had to be redeployed to Yuen Long.
When more than 30 officers finally arrived at the scene, it was 11.20pm and most of the thugs in white were gone. “I saw a lot of people in white shirts running right past police, and they did not even stop them,” a witness said. An angry crowd, joined by local residents who had rushed out after finding out about the violence on the news, surrounded the officers. Some hurled profanities at the officers, while others shouted: “Where have you been? You are supposed to protect us. Why are you allowing those men to leave so easily?” Police’s explanation was that the officers did not see anyone breaking the law when they arrived and could not arrest people just because of the color of their clothes.
A second round of violence occurred at about midnight, after more than 200 people confronted a group of men in white who had gathered near the entrance of Nam Pin Wai, a village next to Yuen Long station. Police officers soon arrived to investigate. Some of the men in white retaliated by throwing various objects at dozens of protesters standing on the staircases outside the station exit. The alarmed protesters were forced to retreat into the station, where they banged desperately on the window of the station’s control room, urging MTR employees to shut the gate of the exit. The staff eventually did so. About two dozen of the white-clad men then appeared at the gate, forced open the shutters and rushed into the station. The trapped protesters fled toward Yoho Mall through another exit, but those who could not get away quickly enough were attacked. Once again, there were no police officers in the station when the white gang struck.
Meanwhile, some white-clad men emerged from Nam Pin Wai and chased a group of protesters down a street. A man wearing a dark shirt was seen being hit over the head with sticks, resulting in bloody injuries. Several white-clad men armed with clubs smashed several cars, whose drivers had come to pick up protesters and other train passengers stranded in the area. At 1am, a team of about 100 riot police officers went to the village, where many men in white were gathered, but again no arrests were made. Police said they did not find any weapons or come across anything suspicious.
The Yuen Long incident remained a sore point for months afterward, with angry protesters gathering at the scene on the 21st of every month to criticize the police response that day and demand an independent probe into the force’s handling of events. The Independent Commission Against Corruption, the city’s graft-buster, began investigating whether any police officer was guilty of misconduct.
Questions lingered over the mob in white. Pro-establishment lawmaker Junius Ho Kwan-yiu found himself in hot water when a video clip showing him shaking hands with men in white T-shirts in Yuen Long that Sunday night circulated widely online. Speaking to the media the following day, Ho enraged many when he defended the mob involved in the attack, saying they were merely “defending their home and people.” As for the men he was seen shaking hands with, he said: “Some of them I know, some are village chiefs, teachers, shop owners and car mechanics.” He said that it was just a coincidence that he happened to be in the neighborhood. “I live in Yuen Long, so it is normal for me to be there,” he said. Ho denied that he had known about the attack in advance or that he had any role in it. Instead, he accused lawmaker Lam of “leading protesters to Yuen Long.”
Over the days that followed, police arrested a total of 37 people – some with links to triads – for their alleged roles in the violence. As of January 2020, seven had been charged with rioting. Months after the event, police said they were still collecting evidence. Despite the arrests, lawmaker Lam was unsatisfied that none of those charged was believed to have organized the violence. He and seven other victims, including chef So, filed a lawsuit against the police commissioner, seeking a total of HK$2.7 million (US$350,000) in compensation. Lam said the Yuen Long attack proved a watershed for the protest movement. Accusing the police of colluding with the gangsters that day, he said: “They have lost their credibility.” The distrust fueled a worrying trend of vigilantism, he noted, as protesters involved in clashes with rival groups began preferring to “resolve matters privately.” “They used to ask lawmakers to mediate and reported to police only if disputes could not be solved, but not after July 21,” he claimed.
Police chief Lo categorically denied the suggestion of collusion between his officers and the Yuen Long attackers, but the force was put on the defensive. Senior Superintendent Kelvin Kong Wing-cheung said in January 2020 that the trouble that night was caused by “a group of people who led some protesters to Yuen Long.” But who were they, what did they want, and who was behind them? Those questions remained unanswered, continuing to provide protesters and opposition lawmakers alike political grist for criticism of the police force.
The white-shirt attack also affected residents in the area for months afterward, with people preferring not to stay out late at night and businesses reporting that they were hit too. A popular beef brisket restaurant in the area claimed that its monthly revenues were halved in the wake of the incident. “We used to target diners who return late from work, but now many choose not to eat out and head home as early as they can,” its owner, surnamed Hui, said. “Who is to blame for the fear?”
— With reporting by Clifford Lo and Natalie Wong
The takeover of Hong Kong’s airport
Victor Ting
For five days in August, the city’s international airport, which has won the best airport title over 75 times, was crippled by a protest sit-in that ended in fisticuffs, tear gas and arrests.
In August 2019, Jack Lo sat for three days with thousands of others on the floor of the arrivals hall at Hong Kong International Airport, one of the world’s busiest aviation hubs.
The self-professed radical protester, 17, was exhausted from waving anti-government placards, handing out fliers and trying to explain to foreign visitors what Hong Kong’s anti-government demonstrations were about. He was also frustrated that despite the inconvenience, most travelers came and went, seemingly unaffected and indifferent. The government also appeared unmoved. And now there were rumors swirling that riot police were preparing to swoop in on the airport and clear out the protesters. On Monday, August 12, his fourth day there, Lo was impatient for real action that would make people around the world sit up and take notice. The way to do that, he was convinced, was for the protesters to move to the departure area and stop travelers from leaving. Lo thought to himself: “It’s now or never.”
He shared his views with the group of about 20 protesters around him, saying: “The clock is ticking. There is not a moment to waste.” Not everyone agreed that drastic action would work. Some asked, what if they only ended up alienating the international community? Lo held his ground, saying: “To have an