Linda Kim HONG KONG, August 25 -- Hong Kong police on Sunday said they arrested 29 people after clashes overnight, in which volleys of tear gas were fired to break up anti-government protests and as the Asian financial hub braced for further demonstrations in the day. Aged between 17 and 52, the suspects - 19 men and 10 women - were arrested for offences including the possession of offensive weapons and assault of police officers, police said in a statement. Those arrested included the organiser of Saturday's march, Mr Ventus Lau, public broadcaster RTHK reported. The force also strongly condemned protesters for "breaching public peace" on Saturday. On Sunday, transport to the city's international airport appeared normal, despite protesters' plans for a day-long "stress test" of transport in the aviation hub. Another protest was planned for Sunday in the working class district of Tsuen Wan, while demonstrators also plan a city-wide strike and class boycotts at universities in coming weeks. Hong Kong's metro operator MTR said on Sunday that a number of stations on the Tsuen Wan line would be closed from 1.30pm, RTHK reported. The Kwai Fong and Tsuen Wan stations on the Tsuen Wan line as well as the Tsuen Wan West station on the West Rail line would be temporarily closed. VIOLENT PROTESTS Activists on Saturday threw petrol bombs and bricks in the gritty industrial area of Kwun Tong, a densely populated area of the Chinese territory on the east of the Kowloon peninsula. Four MTR subway stations were closed due to the protests. Police used tear gas after some protesters threw Molotov cocktails and bricks and others tore up "smart" lamp posts equipped with surveillance cameras. Others had set up roadblocks with bamboo scaffolding. It was the first use of tear gas in more than a week after a series of mostly peaceful demonstrations in the former British colony. Strongly condemning the "vandalistic and violent acts of radical protesters" on Saturday, the Hong Kong government said in a statement that the police would strictly follow up on all the illegal acts. It also appealed to the protesters to stop the violence so that order can be restored in society as soon as possible. FIGHT FOR DEMOCRACY The protests, which started over a now-suspended extradition Bill and have evolved into demands for greater democracy, have roiled Hong Kong for three months. Demonstrators' demands include an independent inquiry into what they describe as police brutality, a full withdrawal of the extradition Bill, and universal suffrage. The wider calls for democracy have plunged the city into an unprecedented crisis posing a direct challenge for Communist Party leaders in Beijing. Demonstrators say they are fighting the erosion of the "one country, two systems" arrangement that enshrines a high degree of autonomy for Hong Kong since it was handed back from British to Chinese rule in 1997.
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