CHAPTER 9
FURTHER DISORDERS AND GOVERNMENT
COUNTER-MEASURES
116. The events of 8th July at Sha Tau Kok and the protest made from Peking were widely reported in the communist press in Hong Kong, which claimed that they were proof of armed support for con- frontation by the Peking Government. With this encouragement the views of the communist extremists could not be denied and a wave of violence followed. For the next four days, from 9th to 12th July, there were widespread incidents in Kowloon and Hong Kong Island in which Police were attacked, public transport vehicles damaged and set on fire and their drivers assaulted, and public buildings damaged. It was widely rumoured that the communists were offering a reward of $20,000 for killing a Police Officer and $3,000 for killing a transport worker.
117. The main centres of the disorders were communist department stores, schools and trade union offices which offered a convenient assembly point for the rioters and a base for attack or retreat. The tactics used were the same in many incidents: a demonstration was staged, sometimes by school-children, and as the Police arrived to in- vestigate a gang of men emerged from their base to attack them. A typical incident occurred on 9th July outside the Fukien Middle School at Queen's Road West. At 5 p.m. that day a group of children came out of the school and caused a traffic hold-up. When the Police approached they retreated into the school. Half an hour later they emerged again and began demonstrating, under the directions of a teacher. The Police again intervened and they were first assailed by bottles thrown from the school and other adjacent buildings and were then attacked by a gang of men armed with knives, iron bars and cargo hooks. One constable was killed and two others were injured, one seriously. Two of the attackers were killed and one injured by Police counteraction.
118. There were incidents on every day during this period in the vicinity of the Wah Fung Company's shop at North Point, which was believed to harbour as many as 200 communist trouble-makers at one time. On the 9th July a riotous crowd attacked trams and buses and set fire to a mini-bus. On the night of the 10th, buses and trams were again attacked, some windows in the State Theatre were broken and an attempt was made to set fire to the tram-controller's office. The
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