Hong Kong parliament debating security bill amid tightened security

Hundreds of riot police have been deployed in and around Hong Kong’s financial district and parliament building as the Legislative Council debates a new national security bill.

Police vehicles and officers took up positions along roads near the heart of the financial center on Wednesday.

Police set up a wall made of two-meter-tall, white and blue plastic barriers filled with water around the city’s parliamentary building, extending across a nearby park up to Victoria Harbor.

Police confront protesters

Later on Wednesday, riot police fired pepper pellets to disperse the anti-Beijing protesters in the city while local legislators debated the national security bill.

Many shops, banks, and offices closed early, and police officers stopped and searched dozens on the sidewalks.

Police later announced the detention of at least 16 protesters for violations ranging from possession of offensive weapons and tools for illegal use to dangerous driving.

The security bill being considered on Wednesday is expected to become law next month.

Beijing proposed the new national security law last Friday. It is expected to criminalize sedition, secession, and subversion against the mainland. It would also pave the way for Chinese national security institutions to operate in the city for the first time since 1997, when Hong Kong returned from British to Chinese rule.

ME