Hong Kong protesters issue demands as they barricade themselves into university

Protesters who barricaded themselves in to a university in Hong Kong have partially cleared a road they were blocking and demanded the government commit to holding local elections on November 24.

One lane of the Tolo Highway was cleared in both directions on Friday, but the road remained closed after workers sent to clean up shattered glass were threatened by protesters with bows and arrows and hard objects, authorities said.

“Since the highway is still filled with hard objects and devoid of any road signs or traffic cones, reopening the road would certainly cause danger to road users,” a government statement said.

The district council elections are seen as a barometer of public sentiment in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory, which has been riven by anti-government protests for more than five months.

Pro-democracy activists say the government may use the escalating violence as a reason to cancel the elections.

The police, meanwhile, said they would investigate the death of a 70-year-old man who was hit in the head by a brick as a murder case.

In London, Hong Kong justice secretary Teresa Cheng was pushed to the ground by activists who were following her and shouting at her, injuring her hand, the Chinese Embassy said.

“We express strong indignation and unequivocally condemn the activists,” the embassy said in a statement. “Now, they are taking such violence abroad and into the UK.”

Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam called the attack “barbaric” and said it violated the principles of a civilised society.

Students and other protesters have taken over major campuses in Hong Kong, building barricades and stockpiling petrol bombs and other weapons.