HONG KONG – Hong Kong police were out in force on China’s National Day holiday Thursday, detaining and searching people on the streets of a popular shopping district after calls were made online urging people to take part in anti-government protests.National Day, celebrating the founding of the People's Republic of China, has become a day of protest in Hong Kong by those who oppose Beijing's increasing control in the semi-autonomous city.
Small groups of protesters gathered in the popular Causeway Bay shopping district, although they were outnumbered by police.
Social-distancing restrictions due to the coronavirus meant large-scale protests don't have authorization. In the afternoon, police cordoned off certain areas of the district and.