Hong Kong authorities have invoked a colonial-era law for the first time in half a century that bans people from wearing masks at protests. The move was done in light of the increasing violence amongst protesters who have been demanding independence from China.
The law is officially called The Emergency Regulations Ordinance, first introduced in 1922, to "end the violence and restore law and order to the streets."
The emergency law also endows the government with other powers, such as imposing curfews. censoring media, restricting ports and other transport limitations. However, for now, the law is only being enacted to a small extent, with Chief Executive Carrie Lam only outlawing gas masks that have become a symbol of protest.
"The radical behavior of rioters took Hong Kong through a very dark night, leaving society today half-paralyzed," Lam said, in her first comments since Friday's ban. "The extreme violence clearly illustrated that Hong Kong's public safety is widely endangered.That's the concrete reason that we had to invoke emergency law yesterday to introduce the anti-mask law."
The move was not received well by protesters, who took to the streets to defy the prohibition, incurring fines and jail time. The law took effect at 12:01 a.m. Saturday, entailing a tense weekend between protesters and officials.
Some of the violent events that have occurred include a 14-year-old boy taking a gunshot wound to the leg, who was injured after an officer "fired one shot in self-defense." There was also another case of an 18-year old being shot in one of the numerous violent clashes occurring among the protests.
Moreover, the protests are seriously hindering the economy, as after Friday's violence, rail operator MTR Corp actually shut down the entire network, which carries about 5 million passengers each day. This has rarely ever happened before and if things like this continue, Hong Kong's economy is in serious danger. Even worse, shopping malls and supermarkets were also shut down, causing serious domestic inconveniences.
It remains to be seen how the ban will affect the ongoing protests and the protestors' collective sentiment. However, chances are that this move will only enrage dissenters further, and cause more turmoil in the region.
"Invoking this archaic law will only make the situation worse," said Alvin Yeung, a pro-democracy lawmaker and barrister in the city. "This will not solve the turmoil-peace can only come if there is a political solution."