Occupy Central to commemorate one-month anniversary of the first use of tear gas today

By Coconuts Hong Kong

Oct 28, 2014 | 12:55pm Hong Kong time

Protesters flee from one of the first canisters of tear gas thrown at protesters on Sep. 28 in Admiralty. (Laurel Chor/Coconuts Media)

Today, Oct. 28, marks exactly one month since the birth of the Umbrella Movement. On Sep. 28 the police used tear gas and pepper spray against pro-democracy protesters in Admiralty, who had only umbrellas to defend themselves with.

From 5pm to 10pm today, Occupy Central will hold a series of events to commemorate its one-month anniversary, inviting “all who support genuine universal suffrage to come back to Umbrella Square” and to wear what they wore on that fateful day. They will also be having 87 seconds of silence, to remember the 87 uses of tear gas by the police.

Here is the full rundown of planned events:

5:30pm: Villagers from the 3 Occupied Areas on stage; Visual recap: ‘928 When Tears Came Down’

5:57pm: Moment of Silence, for 87 seconds (occupiers in the squares hold up items they wore on 9.28)

6pm-8pm: Creative showcase by villagers (photography, dance, installations, singing, drama…)

8-10pm: Evening Rally: Democracy fears not tears, The day Hong Kong changed (Sharing sessions with Hong Kong Federation of Students, Scholarism, OCLP, United Front in support of Students’ and People’s Struggle, medical team, journalists, teachers, social workers, religious groups, cultural workers, grassroots, pro-democracy legislators, …)”

Watch our Coconuts TV video on the first few days of Occupy Central: