HONG KONG: Hundreds gathered outside the government headquarters in Hong Kong on Thursday to mark the third anniversary of mass pro-democracy rallies known as the Umbrella Movement, as fears grow over Beijing’s tightening grip on the city.

Tens of thousands blocked major thoroughfares in the city for 79 days starting Sept 28, 2014 to call for fully free leadership elections in the city, in a movement spearheaded by student leaders who have since been jailed for their involvement.

Hundreds of people raised yellow umbrellas at 5:58pm on Thursday as smoke was generated from a machine, to mark the time when police fired teargas at protesters, and audio recordings from three years ago were played on speakers.

“I want universal suffrage, civil disobedience!” crowds shouted.

“There’s more younger people coming out, it’s a good thing,” Anthony Kwok, 52, who attended the event said.

“We must be unified in our next step forward,” Kwok, a part-time bartender said.The face of the movement Joshua Wong, former lawmaker Nathan Law and fellow protest leader Alex Chow were sent to prison in August for their leading role in the initial protest that sparked the Umbrella Movement.

Their jailing has been slammed by international rights groups and politicians and has prompted accusations that the independence of Hong Kong’s courts has been compromised under pressure from Beijing.

Published in Dawn, September 29th, 2017