For the first time since its handover to China more than two decades ago, a city-wide strike brought much of Hong Kong to a standstill.
In an unusual sight for a city that prides itself on its work ethic, tens of thousands of Hong Kongers went on strike on Monday to support protesters who have been pressuring the government for the past nine weeks to answer their five demands, including a complete withdraw of the now-suspended extradition bill and setting up an independent commission to investigate whether Hong Kong Police have improperly used force against protesters.
One-third of aviation industry workers took sick leave on Monday, the Ming Pao Daily News reported, resulting in more than 230 flights cancelled. Hong Kong International Airport was forced to operate with only one of two runways because of the number of air traffic controllers who called in sick. Lam suspended work on the bill soon after a violent clearance operation by police around government headquarters in mid-June. Despite reiterating on numerous occasion that the bill was “dead,” Lam and her ministers have refused to legally withdraw the bill, which remains one of the protesters' demands.
Protesters have now started calling police"triads," a referenced to organized crime in China and elsewhere, accusing the police of colluded with organized crime in the Yuen Long attacks.