The 2015 Yuen Long protest, called Liberate Yuen Long or Recover Yuen Long () by the protesters, was part of a series of
anti-parallel trading protests
Anti-parallel trading protests () took place in Hong Kong between 2012 and 2015, and again in 2019, against parallel traders importing goods from Hong Kong to Mainland China. Protestors claim that parallel trading has caused a shortage of hous ...
in the northern districts of Hong Kong that took place on 1 March 2015 in
Yuen Long
Yuen Long is a town in the western New Territories, Hong Kong. To its west lie Hung Shui Kiu (), Tin Shui Wai, Lau Fau Shan and Ha Tsuen, to the south Shap Pat Heung and Tai Tong, to the east Au Tau and Kam Tin (), and to the north Nam Sang W ...
. It was mainly organised by
Civic Passion
Civic Passion was a radical, populist, localist, and nativist political party in Hong Kong. Founded by Wong Yeung-tat as an activist group in 2012, it held strong localist views and opposed the involvement of the Chinese government in the gov ...
,
Hong Kong Indigenous
Hong Kong Indigenous is a localist political group established in 2015. It is known for its hardline localist stances and militant methods of protesting. It has been actively involved in protests and engaged into violent clashes with police, ...
and groups from social media and local residents. The protesters rallied against the
parallel traders who buy goods in Hong Kong, especially in
Yuen Long
Yuen Long is a town in the western New Territories, Hong Kong. To its west lie Hung Shui Kiu (), Tin Shui Wai, Lau Fau Shan and Ha Tsuen, to the south Shap Pat Heung and Tai Tong, to the east Au Tau and Kam Tin (), and to the north Nam Sang W ...
, and sell them in
Mainland China
"Mainland China" is a geopolitical term defined as the territory governed by the People's Republic of China (including islands like Hainan or Chongming), excluding dependent territories of the PRC, and other territories within Greater China. ...
for profit.
Cause
The trigger of this protest is the parallel traders from Mainland China who use
multiple entry visa policy to import goods, such as milk powder, shampoo, medicine back to China and sell them. The parallel traders were mainly active in the
North District. Perceived shortages and inflation led the residents there to respond with the "Recover Sheung Shui" campaign to protest this situation in 2012. However, the parallel traders' sphere of activity expanded to
Tuen Mun
Tuen Mun or Castle Peak is an area near the mouth of Tuen Mun River and Castle Peak Bay in the New Territories, Hong Kong. It was one of the earliest settlements in what is now Hong Kong and can be dated to the Neolithic period. In the more re ...
,
Sha Tin
Sha Tin, also spelt Shatin, is a neighbourhood along Shing Mun River in the eastern New Territories, Hong Kong. Administratively, it is part of the Sha Tin District. Sha Tin is one of the neighbourhoods of the Sha Tin New Town project.
The ne ...
and
Yuen Long
Yuen Long is a town in the western New Territories, Hong Kong. To its west lie Hung Shui Kiu (), Tin Shui Wai, Lau Fau Shan and Ha Tsuen, to the south Shap Pat Heung and Tai Tong, to the east Au Tau and Kam Tin (), and to the north Nam Sang W ...
due to the convenience of transportation and led to the "liberate" activities of these districts.
Development
Around 200 people gathered at
Long Ping station at 3:30 pm and arrived Sau Fu Street at 4 pm. At 4:15 pm, protesters tried to break the police line and pushed against the pro-parallel trading elements on Sau Fu Street, when the police used pepper spray without warning. Some pro-parallel trading people were using foul language and threw their fists at the protesters. Several people were arrested by the police, including a girl who was bleeding on her face. At 4:30 pm, more than 50 members of
Civic Passion
Civic Passion was a radical, populist, localist, and nativist political party in Hong Kong. Founded by Wong Yeung-tat as an activist group in 2012, it held strong localist views and opposed the involvement of the Chinese government in the gov ...
regrouped and demanded for the abolition of the multiple entry visa policy. The dispute between the pro- and anti-parallel trading elements continued as the group moved to Tung Lok Street at 5:15 pm. At 6 pm, people gathered on the Yuen Long Main Road and halted the traffic. Some protesters started to set up some obstacles, such as rubbish bins at the centre. From 7 to 8 pm, dozens of anti-parallel trading groups marched from Yuen Long Main Road to Kau Yuk Road and attempted to occupy the area. Many protesters still stayed in the protest zone at 10:30 pm.
The police used pepper spray 21 times to control the chaotic situation. Later, the police has arrested 36 men and 2 women, aged from 13 to 74, who involved in common assault, assaulting police and possession of weapons. Also, five police officers were injured and had to receive treatment in hospital.
[
]
Effect
The host hopes to add more pressure to the government to face the problem of parallel traders. Recently, the government addressed that it had sent a proposal to the Beijing authority to regulate the "multiple-entry permit" plan, which reveals the protest was effective. Also, after the protest, the conflicts between Hongkongers and mainlanders intensified so parallel traders stopped smuggling and decreased the frequency of travelling to Hong Kong.
Some shops were forced to close because of the chaos. Since too many people gathered together and scuffles broke out. Some managers closed their shops to ensure their safety and that more or less badly affected their operation. About 30 shops had been forced to close. Also, members of the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce
The Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce (HKGCC; ) was founded on 29 May 1861, and is the oldest and one of the largest business organizations in Hong Kong. It has around 4,000 corporate members, who combined employ around one-third of Hong Kon ...
could sue over their losses.
Meanwhile, the traffic was blocked by the protesters. owing to the large number of people and narrow pavement, some protesters were forced to stand at the highway and needed police to direct the traffic. The traffic of Yuen Long Main Road was suspended because protesters occupied the area there.
Response
Government
Hong Kong Secretary for Security
The Secretary for Security is the member of the Government of Hong Kong in charge of the Security Bureau, which is responsible for public safety, security, and immigration matters.
The post was created in 1973 and since the Principal Offic ...
Lai Tung-kwok
Lai Tung-kwok, GBS, IDSM, JP (; born 12 November 1951 in Hong Kong) is a retired civil servant and principal official who held the position of Secretary for Security of Hong Kong between 2012 and 2017. He previously served as Under Secretary ...
, said public could express their views within the confines of the law. Police definitely would not tolerate illegal behaviour, and would enforce the law. He also added that the authority would continue to combat related offences.
Hong Kong Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development
The Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development heads the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau of the Hong Kong Government. The Secretary is responsible for promoting commerce and the economic development of Hong Kong. The position was c ...
Gregory So Kam-leung
Gregory So Kam-leung () is the former Secretary for Commerce and Economic Development of Hong Kong.
Education
So holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Carleton University and a double degree of Master of business administration and ...
, emphasises that the Individual Visit Scheme
The Individual Visit Scheme begun on 28 July 2003 allowing travelers from Mainland China to visit Hong Kong and Macau on an individual basis; prior to the Scheme, Mainland residents could only visit on business visas or on group tours.
The outb ...
is important to Hong Kong. The authority cannot change the policy. He also added that cancelling "multiple-entry permit" scheme these proposals are substantial adjustments, the authority needs to consider carefully. Also, he thinks public should not confuse parallel trader with visitors.
Mainland Chinese media
The Xinhua News Agency
Xinhua News Agency (English pronunciation: )J. C. Wells: Longman Pronunciation Dictionary, 3rd ed., for both British and American English, or New China News Agency, is the official state news agency of the People's Republic of China. Xinhua ...
had reported the Liberate Yuen Long Protests. It reported that some of the Hong Kong individual radical groups launch Liberte Yuen Long Campaign will bring about the nuisance to merchant in Yuen Long
Yuen Long is a town in the western New Territories, Hong Kong. To its west lie Hung Shui Kiu (), Tin Shui Wai, Lau Fau Shan and Ha Tsuen, to the south Shap Pat Heung and Tai Tong, to the east Au Tau and Kam Tin (), and to the north Nam Sang W ...
. Also, Hong Kong residence and some community organisation expressed great indignation to those demonstrators, and require that police would enforce the law firmly.
Shap Pat Heung Rural Committee
Before the demonstration, the chairperson of Shap Pat Heung
Shap Pat Heung is an area in the New Territories of Hong Kong. Located south of Yuen Long and northeast of Tai Tong, the area occupies the plain north of hills of Tai Lam. The Cantonese name 'Shap Pat Heung' means 'eighteen villages'Antiq ...
Rural Committee
Rural committee () is a body representing the welfare of indigenous residents in the New Territories of Hong Kong. The chairman of each rural committee is the representative in the Heung Yee Kuk, and is ''ex officio'' member of a district coun ...
threatened that villagers had been overwhelmed and surrounded protesters when they stepped out Long Ping station. They could not take any advantages if their behaved violently. Villagers could counterattack tenfold. In addition, five hundred police had been stood by to cope with the protest.
Yuen Long residents
Some of the Yuen Long
Yuen Long is a town in the western New Territories, Hong Kong. To its west lie Hung Shui Kiu (), Tin Shui Wai, Lau Fau Shan and Ha Tsuen, to the south Shap Pat Heung and Tai Tong, to the east Au Tau and Kam Tin (), and to the north Nam Sang W ...
residents were dissatisfied with the parallel traders. A local opined that parallel traders caused road congestions which brought about traffic problems, and because of the increasing number of pharmacies and gold shops aimed at parallel traders instead of shops aimed at locals, he hoped multiple-entry permits should be revoked.
Some local residents did not agree with this campaign and believed the protesters were "stirring up trouble".
Follow-up action
On 8 March, some Internet users organised the fourth "liberate" action—Visiting Sheung Shui
Sheung Shui (, literally "Above-water") is an area in the New Territories, Hong Kong. Sheung Shui Town, a part of this area, is part of the Fanling–Sheung Shui New Town in the North District of Hong Kong. Fanling Town is to its southea ...
through social networking group. The aim of this operation was similar to the previous demonstration. At 4 pm, protesters responded to the exhortation from organizers and went to Tuen Mun. They demonstrated by shouting slogans loudly in different shopping malls. Some citizens caused chaos and collided with parallel traders near B3X bus stop. At night, about 30 protesters went to Hong Kong Clock Tower
Clock towers are a specific type of structure which house a turret clock and have one or more clock faces on the upper exterior walls. Many clock towers are freestanding structures but they can also adjoin or be located on top of another buildi ...
continue demonstration. Finally, they were stopped by police and dismissed. The police arrested 7 people in total, aged 13 to 21.
See also
* 2019–20 Hong Kong protests § Reclaim Yuen Long, another protest held in Yuen Long
References
{{commonscat, 2015 Yuen Long Protest
2015 in Hong Kong
Protests in Hong Kong
Localism in Hong Kong
Yuen Long