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PART III THE DISTURBANCES
57
small mobs active in the Mong Kok and Yau Ma Tei districts. Various streets bordering the area in which the disturbances occurred had been picketed by troops to prevent the spread of disturbances.
199. Until midnight, only the five police companies, whose actions have been described, were engaged in suppressing the riots. Shortly after, however, the curfew was promulgated and the Wong Tai Sin, Auxiliary and Police Training Contingent companies moved up to give assistance in restoring order. At 12.15 a.m. a proclamation was made under the Peace Preservation Ordinance (Chapter 244) that the Colony should be subject to Parts 2 and 3 of that Ordinance. The effect of this is to give increased powers of search and arrest to Justices of the Peace and police officers authorized by them.
200. The main incidents between midnight and 1 a.m. were as follows. At about 12.20 a.m. Yau Ma Tei company advanced on a crowd which was attempting to set fire to vehicles at the junction of Mong Kok Road and Shanghai Street. After warnings and tear smoke had failed to disperse the crowds, a total of seven rounds of ammunition were fired without any casualties being observed. In another incident involving a platoon of this company in Mong Kok Road near Tung Choi Street, a mob of people with burning torches who were attempting to set fire to of a vehicle were dispersed after one shot had been fired.
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201. At 12.30 a.m. the Auxiliary company, on arriving at Tong Mei Road with instructions to set up a cordon to prevent crowds spreading to the west, saw a crowd of 150-200 destroying property and building fires in the road, which endangered the lines of parked vehicles. The company was attacked with stones and debris as they alighted from their vehicles and the crowds started to build barricades in Tong Mei Road. They failed to disperse when warnings were given and tear smoke had to be used.
202. At about the same time, the Wong Tai Sin company arrived at the junction of Nathan Road and Public Square Street with 'B' Company 1/2 Gurkha Rifles in support to deal with a crowd of 300 in this vicinity, reported to be burning the traffic pagoda and making fires in Nathan Road. The crowd gradually grew in size but retreated as the police and troops marched down Nathan Road; the company halted at Jordan Road after the crowd had dispersed into side streets; the majority ran off in the direction of the vehicular ferry concourse and were dispersed with tear smoke into the side streets off Jordan Road. The company then continued down Nathan Road into Tsim Sha Tsui, where they encountered no serious incident and were mainly engaged in enforcing the curfew, which had come into effect at 12.30 a.m.
203. Between 1 and 2 a.m. the main incidents were as follows. The Yau Ma Tei company used tear smoke to disperse small crowds in the streets West of Nathan Road in Mong Kok and one shot was fired to prevent missiles being thrown from