About 800 protesters "surrendered" on the night of November 19, 500 others were arrested and about 60-100 were still in Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

At Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) on Hung Hom Street, about 800 protesters, including 300 under 18, "surrendered" on the night of November 19 while another 500 were arrested. Most of them were arrested for riot, which could carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison. Hong Kong police on November 18 called on protesters to lay down their weapons, "surrender" and said they would be arrested on charges of riot.

Some protesters left PolyU in hypothermia and injured their legs. Opposition MP Ted Hui Chi-Mush sent 12 people out of school. They are allowed to go home without being arrested.

20 volunteers at the school who volunteered at the school since November 17 said they had completed the mission and would leave. He said, adding that the number of protesters remaining in the school has decreased and that their food and water is about to run out.

Protesters who have gone out estimate that between 60 and 100 people are still on campus, many of whom are not PolyU students or may have never attended any university.

Tensions have increased since the beginning of the week before protesters occupied the universities, then concentrated in the PolyU since November 17. The police have deployed forces around the school for more than three days and used rubber bullets, tear gas, and water cannons to prevent people from escaping without handing them over.

280 injured protesters in PolyU were taken to 12 public hospitals on the afternoon of November 19. In the evening of the same day, newly appointed Hong Kong Police Commander Chris Tang appeared outside the school to cheer the morale of the policemen on duty.

Bishop Joseph Ha Chi-shing also visited the school because he heard protesters were ready to die to protect the school. "I hope they can understand that not everything can be solved in a day. I'm here to listen to what protesters want, I'm not sure it's easy to persuade them to leave," he said.

Over the past three days, protesters have tried various methods to get off campus. On the evening of November 18, dozens of people swung ropes from an overpass near the school to the highway, where motorcyclists were waiting to pick them up. The two groups tried to leave the school on November 19 but were arrested by the police. Previously, some people got into a sewer leading to an underground tunnel but as a result they were led to another sewer on the campus.

"It's disgusting down there," said a masked protester. "We have to resort to this because we don't know how else to seek outside help."

According to SCMP observers, at least three groups tried to escape the campus last night. A group of about 20 people tried to escape by nearby roads early in the afternoon but failed because police were patrolling near the overpass.

Some protesters vowed they would fight until they were arrested. "We will not surrender. Surrendering is a failure," said Eric, 18, a student who was on campus for three days. "We will hide or we can lock ourselves in the room." Eric said he only slept 5 hours in the past three days because he was busy looking for an exit or being alert to the police.

Speaking ahead of yesterday's Executive Council meeting, Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam said she gave two principles to the police to handle the situation that they had to resolve their tensions peacefully. and humane treatment of protesters who are injured or under the age of 18.

According to her, people under 18 were allowed to go home after their personal information was recorded by the police. However, the police reserve the right to arrest these people.

On November 18, protesters were active throughout the Mekong region, blocking roads and throwing gasoline bombs to distract and disperse police at PolyU. More than 200 people were arrested on Pitt Street, Mong Kok on November 18 and will be charged with rioting. This is the largest number of people being prosecuted for committing crimes at the same time and will go to court in West Kowloon this morning.

Police fired 1,458 tear gas bullets, 1,391 rubber bullets, 325 bean bullets and 265 grenades. It is also the day with the highest number of people arrested since the protests broke out in June. Hong Kong police had a break on the night of November 19 when only about 100 protesters were active in Mong Kok. They maintain a thin force and have no significant activity.

Ms. Lam said a record high number of people arrested showed that authorities and police forces could handle the situation, refuting speculation that the Chinese People's Liberation Army might be required to intervene to restore order. self city. Asked about speculation that November 24 council elections could be postponed, Lam urged protesters to stop violent tactics so that the city could hold elections "promptly and fairly." ".

Protests erupted in Hong Kong initially to protest the extradition bill that allows criminals to be brought into jurisdictions where the Special Zone has not signed an extradition treaty, including mainland China. Although the special government announced the withdrawal of the bill, protesters still took to the streets to make other claims, including investigating the use of force by police and Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam resigned.

Chinese President Xi Jinping on November 14 said that unrest in Hong Kong "seriously trampled on the rule of law and social order", challenging the fundamentals of a one-nation, two-state model. regime. Xi asserted that preventing violence, controlling riot and restoring order are urgent tasks for Hong Kong.