Hong Kong police remove barricades in protest area

Hong Kong, Oct 17 (IANS) More than 100 Hong Kong police officers started removing barricades in Mong Kok, one of the main demonstration areas, Friday morning where Occupy Central movement participants had blockaded roads and streets from Sep 28.

From around 5 a.m., the police started a surprise raid in the area when a handful of stay-in Occupy Central protesters were still sleeping, Xinhua reported.

The police removed tents, bamboo and other makeshift barricades before the protesters could resist.

The Occupy Central area in Mong Kok is across the Victoria Harbour from the main demonstration areas near the region's government headquarters in Admiralty and commercial area in Causeway Bay.

As of 7 a.m., most of the tents and steel fences set by Occupy Central protesters in Mong Kok had been removed and all subway exits of Mong Kok station resumed normal operation.

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Thousands of protesters, most of whom are students, joined the Occupy Central movement to express their discontent with a framework set by China's top legislature on electing the region's next leader through universal suffrage.

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