Hong Kong police dismantle Occupy

Police have moved in from all sides of Hong Kong's pro-democracy protest camp as a few hundred demonstrators remained defiant.

Clearing begins at Occupy Hong Kong site

Words "We'll be back" are formed at an occupied area outside government headquarters in Hong Kong Thursday, Dec. 11, 2014

Demonstrators have been hauled away after refusing to leave the main pro-democracy protest camp in Hong Kong.

The final push to retake streets occupied by activists for two-and-a-half months saw bailiffs tear down their tents and dismantle barricades in the CBD camp.

The first person arrested was carried away by four officers by her arms and legs.

The students and other activists have been protesting Beijing's restrictions on the first election for Hong Kong's leader, though the movement's momentum has been fading in recent weeks.

Many protesters had heeded police warnings to leave the protest zone, but dozens of students, pro-democracy MPs and others, including middle-aged and elderly supporters, remained on Thursday afternoon.

The students at the front lay down and locked arms.

Earlier on Thursday, workers carrying out a court order removed barricades on the edge of the protest site before officers moved in and dismantled tents.
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They had warned protesters that they faced arrest if they did not leave.

"I think the spirit of the movement still lives, but the idea of occupying streets is over," said student Andrew Chan, 20, as he left the site.

"We can't even get a big crowd to come out today to fight the police clearing the site."
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One of the student leaders, Alex Chow, had rallied the crowds as the police approached, saying their fight was not over and they would find other ways to press forward in the days to come.

The protesters reject Beijing's restrictions on the first election for the city's top leader, scheduled for 2017, but have failed to win any concessions from Hong Kong's government.

The sprawling encampment in Hong Kong's Admiralty section, on the edge of the financial district, has been the focal point for the protesters, who have occupied the site for 75 days.


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