HK students strike on 1st day of school year

Thousands of Hong Kong high school students went on strike on the first day of the new academic year on Monday in support of pro-democracy demonstrations that have rocked the city since June.

According to the organizers, more than 10,000 students joined the strike, which seeks to get the Hong Kong authorities respond to five demands of the protesters, reports Efe news.

These demands include the total withdrawal of a contentious extradition bill and the term "revolt" in referring to the demonstrations, amnesty for those arrested, an independent investigation into police brutality in dispersing protests, and the introduction of universal suffrage.

Several schools in Hong Kong marked their support with silence and human chains, while a rally was planned at Edinburgh Place between 10.30 a.m. and 5 p.m.

The students, many of them masked and dressed in black, like the protesters, distributed informational posters regarding the motives behind the strike.

"Instead of avoiding it we should welcome (the chance) to talk about it," said a student, according to the island's state-owned RTHK broadcaster.

"That's not about (being_ perfect. That's about human rights. That's about democracy and I don't think that's about politics - that's about our lives," the student added.

Meanwhile, the subway resumed operations after the line connecting the city to the airport was suspended on Sunday due to acts of vandalism by some protesters.

Sunday's protests sought to hinder traffic to Hong Kong airport, which is one of Asia's busiest and where demonstrations resulted in the cancellation of nearly a thousand flights in mid-August.

Hong Kong has seen 13 consecutive weeks of mass protests sparked by the proposed extradition bill that would have enabled fugitives to be sent from Hong Kong to mainland China to face trials under Beijing's judicial system.

Though the proposed law has been declared "dead" by leader Carrie Lam, the anti-extradition bill campaign has morphed into a broader movement seeking to reverse a general decline in freedoms and investigate alleged police brutality and violations of law.

( With inputs from IANS )