Beijing: China on Saturday deployed its troops in Hong Kong for the first time since the unprecedented pro-democracy protests began in the former British colony more than five months ago over a proposed extradition law, with soldiers in plain clothes clearing the roadblocks.
Soldiers from the Hong Kong Garrison of People’s Liberation Army (PLA), the world’s largest military, have been deployed for the first time in more than five months of civil unrest in Hong Kong, as dozens marched from their Kowloon garrison to help clear roadblocks, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.
It was also the first time in over a year that the PLA local garrison has been involved in the public community work. The soldiers, mostly in green T-shirts and black shorts, and carrying red buckets, ran out of the PLA’s Kowloon Tong barracks at about 4 PM to clear obstacles on Renfrew Road, near Baptist University’s campus, the report said.
China earlier said under Article 14 of the city’s Garrison Law and Basic Law - the city’s mini-constitution, the PLA must not interfere in local affairs but troops can be called out to help with disaster relief if requested by the local government. Such a request has never been made since the city returned to the Chinese rule 22 years ago. On Thursday, Xi broke his silence over Hong Kong’s unprecedented pro-democracy protests threatening China’s control over the former British colony, saying the most pressing task at present was to bring violence and chaos to an end and restore order.
