06 AUG 2019: A general strike in Hong Kong erupted in citywide mayhem Monday as defiant protesters started fires outside police stations and hurled bricks and eggs at officers. After disrupting traffic early in the day, they filled public parks and squares in several districts, refusing to disperse even as police repeatedly fired tear gas and rubber bullets from above. Additionally, more than 77 flights were cancelled according to the airport authority.

While previous large rallies over the past two months of anti-government protests have generally been held on weekends, Monday’s strike paralyzed city operations in an effort to draw more attention to the movement’s demands.

Hong Kong is on “the verge of a very dangerous situation,” said Chief Executive Carrie Lam who said at a news conference that the protests had “ulterior motives” that threaten Hong Kong’s prosperity and security. “I don’t think at this point in time, resignation of myself or some of my colleagues would provide a better solution,” she said.

Protesters challenged law enforcement in at least eight districts, responding to continuous rounds of tear gas by lobbing the canisters back at police and yelling invectives. Protesters clacked their umbrellas together and pounded on metal street signs, daring the officers to move closer.

The violence followed a day of striking that sparked bedlam throughout the city. Protesters started early, with the aim of hampering the morning rush hour. In the subway, protesters blocked train and platform doors, activated emergency alarms and threw objects onto the tracks.

The strike was the latest action in a summer of fiery demonstrations that began in response to proposed extradition legislation that would have allowed some suspects to be sent to mainland China for trials.

While the government has since suspended the bill, protesters have pressed on with broader calls for it to be scrapped entirely, along with demands for democratic reforms including the dissolution of the current legislature and an investigation into alleged police brutality. In recent weeks, footage has shown police officers beating protesters and ignoring calls for help during a mob attack that left 44 injured in a commuter rail station.

Hong Kong, a former British colony, was returned to China in 1997 under a framework of “one country, two systems,” which promised the city certain democratic freedoms not afforded to the mainland. With the arrests of booksellers and activists in recent years, however, some Hong Kong residents feel that Beijing has been eroding their rights.

The Communist Party-led central government in Beijing has condemned what it calls violent and radical protesters who have vandalized the Chinese national emblem and more recently thrown the country’s flag into Victoria Harbour. China has accused unnamed “foreign forces” of inflaming the demonstrations out of a desire to contain the country’s development.

CCTV, China’s state broadcaster, warned Monday that the “maniacs and thugs” will “pay a price.”

More than 400 protesters have been arrested since June 9, when a massive march drew more than one million people and launched the protest movement. Those being held, who range in age from 14 to 76, face charges including rioting, unlawful assembly, possessing offensive weapons and assaulting officers and obstructing police operations, said spokesperson Yolanda Yu Hoi-kwan.

Yu said police have used 1,000 tear gas grenades and fired more than 300 non-lethal bullets. More than 100 officers have been injured. She said that violence has been escalating, with protesters using gasoline bombs and fire.

“If we continue to tolerate and turn a blind eye to lawless behaviour, the consequences will be undesirable for our citizens.”