Hong Kong Protesters Could Face a Year in Jail for Wearing a Mask: SCMP

(Bloomberg) -- Hong Kong is expected to ban face masks for protesters on Friday in a bid to quell months of violent unrest, invoking emergency rule for the first time since the city came under Chinese control in 1997. Violators of the ban, which will include exemptions, could get a jail term of as much as one year or a fine of HK$25,000 ($3,190), the South China Morning Post reported, citing people it didn’t identify. The former British colony is also studying extending the detention period of suspects beyond 48 hours, given the manpower needed to handle the large volume of protest arrests, the Oriental Daily reported.Hu Xijin, editor-in-chief of China’s Global Times newspaper backed by the Communist Party, said in a tweet that Western countries shouldn’t apply “nasty double standards” when reacting to the ban while noting that Canada and the U.S. state of New York were reported to have similar laws.“There’s strong demand in Hong Kong calling for anti-mask law,” Hu said. “Most of the violent activities in Hong Kong were committed by masked rioters.”Hong Kong to Enact Rare Emergency Rule for Mask Ban, Reports SayThe move is likely to trigger intense clashes this weekend, with protesters already calling for mass demonstrations to oppose the law. The face mask has become a symbol of resistance among protesters who fear retribution if they are identified: China has already applied pressure to businesses such as Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd. to fire employees who have participated in demonstrations. First passed by the British government in 1922 to quell a seamen’s strike in Hong Kong’s harbor, the emergency law was last used by the colonial administration to help put down riots that rocked the trading hub in 1967. Denounced by protest leaders as a form of martial law, it could give the government greater leeway to arrest citizens, censor publications, shut off communications networks and search premises without warrants, among other measures. The move would come shortly after a protester was shot in violent demonstrations that once again shook the city on Oct. 1, as President Xi Jinping celebrated 70 years of Communist party rule in Beijing. Hong Kong stocks briefly jumped on the reports in afternoon trade on Thursday, rapidly erasing an earlier decline.A spokesman for Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s office wasn’t immediately able to comment on the reports when reached by phone Thursday afternoon.The law would be difficult to enforce, the Post reported, and could spur court challenges as a rights violation. One police inspector, who requested anonymity, told the Post that the move would stir up more trouble.\--With assistance from Melissa Cheok and Chua Baizhen.To contact the reporters on this story: Dominic Lau in Hong Kong at dlau92@bloomberg.net;Iain Marlow in Hong Kong at imarlow1@bloomberg.netTo contact the editors responsible for this story: Daniel Ten Kate at dtenkate@bloomberg.net, Derek WallbankFor more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.com©2019 Bloomberg L.P.

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