TNAG-0072-FCO40-108-Annual-report-on-the-colony-s-affairs-for-1967-1968 — Page 20

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workers from the Hong Kong Artificial Flower works at San Po Kong were

picketing the factory premises and, ignoring repeated warnings from the

police, they persisted in illegally trying to prevent the removal of goods

by the management. The Police finally intervaled and arrested 21 men.

It

was a minor incident; there was little or no violence and no one was injured.

It was however enough to provoke an immediate reaction; headlines appeared

in the communist newspapers denouncing the Government and accusing the Police,

in the most violent terms, of persecution and of brutally attacking unarmed

workers. The Hong Kong & Kowloon Rubber and Plastics Workers Union whose

chairman was among those arrested published four demands:

(a) The Hong Kong Government must cease its brutality

immediately and ensure that it is not repeated.

(b) All the arrested persons must be released immediately.

(c) Compensation must be paid by Government for all

injuries and damage and those responsible must be

punished.

(d) There must be no Government interference in labour

disputes.

These demands were endorsed by the Hong Kong and Kowloon Federation

of Trade Unions. Meetings were held in pro-communist organisations in support

of the arrested workers and posters began to appear attacking the Government

and protesting against police brutality.

At the San Po Kong factory itself there were further demonstrations,

with processions and the chanting of slogans. These inevitably attracted

crowds of idle spectators as well as hooligans and mischief-makers and, when,

on the 11th of May, communist pickets threatened to break into the factory

and there was a further clash with the Police, there was a mob at hand ripe

for violence. There was serious rioting which spread from the strects in the

vicinity of the factory to adjacent areas of Kowloon and for three days mobs, including many who wore paid to take part battled the Police, attacked and

set fire to 'buses and other vehicles and broke into and looted Government

offices and staff quarters in an orgy of destruction.

A curfew was imposed in

the affected areas during the nights of the 11th, 12th and 13th but it was not

until the 14th that calm was restored. These disturbances were dealt with

firmly by the Police but with the minimum of force; no firearms were used

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