Police moves in Hong Kong protests spark outrage

Riot police moving against activists before dawn today sparked outrage after officers were seen kicking a handcuffed protester and dragging dozens of others away in the worst violence against the pro-democracy demonstrations in Hong Kong since they began more than two weeks ago.
Protesters were knocked to the ground by hundreds of police, some with batons, pepper spray and shields. Officers also tore down barricades around an underpass outside the government's headquarters.
The clashes worsened an already bitter standoff between authorities and activists who have taken over key roads and streets in the city to press for democratic reforms.
"Hong Kong police have gone insane today, carrying out their own punishment in private," said pro-democracy lawmaker Lee Cheuk-yan. "Hong Kong's values and its rule of law really have been completely destroyed by police chiefs."

Public anger over the aggressive tactics exploded after local TV showed officers taking a protester around a dark corner and kicking him repeatedly on the ground. It's unclear what provoked the attack. Local Now TV showed him splashing water on officers beforehand.
Protester Ken Tsang said he was kicked while he was "detained and defenseless." He added that he was assaulted again in the police station afterward.

Tsang, a member of a pro-democracy political party, lifted his shirt to show reporters injuries to his torso and said he is considering legal action against police.
Police spokesman Steve Hui said seven officers who were involved have been temporarily reassigned, and that authorities will carry out an impartial investigation. Police arrested 45 demonstrators in the clashes, and said five officers were injured.

China's central government issued its harshest condemnations yet of the protests, calling them illegal, bad for business and against Hong Kong's best interests. Beijing has become increasingly impatient with the demonstrations, the biggest challenge to its authority since China took control of the former British colony in 1997.
A front-page editorial Wednesday in the People's Daily, the ruling Communist Party's mouthpiece, condemned the protests and said "they are doomed to fail."
"Facts and history tell us that radical and illegal acts that got their way only result in more severe illegal activities, exacerbating disorder and turmoil," the commentary said.