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 The gritty, working-class area across the harbor from the main
protest site at Admiralty has been the scene of some of the most
violent clashes during two months of pro-democracy demonstrations in
the Chinese-ruled city.
Hundreds of police stood guard as authorities enforced the court
order to reopen Argyle Street to free up traffic. There was little
resistance until the afternoon when police, some in rows with arms
linked, faced off with protesters, several of whom were forcibly
removed.
Riot police moved into the area in the evening, with a lot of
pushing and shoving as protesters blocked a portion of nearby
Portland Street, where some shops closed early.
More than 20 people were arrested during the day, media said.
Workers in white helmets and vests earlier moved wooden blockades
from the road after demonstrators had dismantled tents and packed up
their belongings. The injunction was granted to a bus company which
said the blockade had hurt business.
Some protesters heckled and held up yellow banners demanding Beijing
allow full democracy in the global financial hub.
"Even if they clear this place, our will to fight for genuine
universal suffrage hasn't changed ... it will only inspire people to
think of other ways to continue this movement," said protester Ken
Chu, 27, wearing a bright yellow safety helmet and a gas mask.
Hong Kong leader Leung Chun-ying, who has called the protests
illegal, urged activists to go home. Hundreds of protesters remain
camped out along nearby Nathan Road, part of which local media said
would be cleared later in the week.
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The move in Mong Kok comes a week after the partial clearance of the
largest protest site next to government buildings in Admiralty,
enforcing another injunction order in a peaceful operation that left
most of the main protest site intact.
Mong Kok has been a flashpoint for street brawls between students
and mobs intent on breaking up the prolonged protests to demand free
elections for the city's next leader in 2017.
In August, Beijing offered Hong Kong people the chance to vote for
their own leader in 2017, but said only two to three candidates
could run after getting backing from a 1,200-person "nominating
committee" stacked with Beijing loyalists.
More than 100,000 people took to the streets at the peak of the
demonstrations but that number has dropped to a few hundred
scattered in tents over the two main sites amid dwindling public
support.
(Additional reporting by Diana Chan, Stefanie McIntyre, Farah Master
and Bobby Yip, Writing by Anne Marie Roantree; Editing by James
Pomfret, Dean Yates and Nick Macfie)
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