The officers - Station Sergeant Lui Kai-man, Woman Sergeant Leung Yuet-mei, and Police Constables Lai Yu-fai and Tam Ka-pun - were among the hundreds of officers who made every effort to maintain law and order throughout HKMC.

SSGT Lui and PC Tam were members of X Company Platoon 1, while WSGT Leung and PC Lai belonged to Echo Company. X Company officers were mainly responsible for ensuring that demonstrators' processions were confined to the designated routes. They also performed other duties as instructed by senior officers.

Echo Company officers' main task was providing support to frontline officers where necessary throughout HKMC. On December 17, they backed up officers in defending cordon lines in Wan Chai, and prevented demonstrators from surging onto Gloucester Road, which was still open to traffic.

X Company officers were mobilised four days before HKMC opened on December 13, to look after the security of the HKMC Accreditation Centre set up in the Central Library in Causeway Bay. They were redeployed to the frontline in Wan Chai immediately after the opening.

Echo Company also started standing by in Wan Chai two days before the opening of HKMC.

SSGT Lui said it was all plain sailing for his men and women until December 17 when demonstrators suddenly veered off from their designated procession routes and stormed police cordon lines at the junctions near Lockhart Road, Marsh Road, Tonnochy Road and Fleming Road. However, this sudden twist of events never caught officers off guard. They were well prepared to take the volatile situation in their stride.

"I must say I was a bit surprised to see this sudden change of events, but every officer was well prepared for any eventuality. And we knew we were not alone," he recalled.

SSGT Lui went on to say that officers were confronted with a critical situation as the demonstrators attacked them and tried to overturn a police vehicle. At this juncture, all the four platoons of the Echo Company quickly converged on the scene to back up officers in their battle against the demonstrators. Eventually officers managed to keep the demonstrators at bay and hold their positions.

After the incident was over, Echo Company officers continued to work into the night, conducting sweeping operations from the section of Jaffe Road near Tonnochy Road to Fleming Road, and set up check lines to prevent further troubles by demonstrators and protect life and property in the vicinity.

Officers exercise restraint

SSGT Lui stressed that all along during the incident officers exercised restraint and used minimum force. "Tactically, we used defensive measures only," he noted.

"Prior to this incident, we also did our best to ensure that demonstrators could carry out their processions in an orderly manner, and express their views and aspirations freely. You can say we have gone out of our way to respect their rights to stage demonstrations and rallies," he added.

For SSGT Lui, the credit for bringing the incident under control goes to every officer. "At the end of the day, our defensive tactics proved effective, and every officer worked very hard in a very tough situation. The incident has brought forth our teamwork, response to changes, dedication to providing quality services and esprit de corps. These attributes are the values the Force cherishes."

Concurring with SSGT Lui, WSGT Leung said: "During the incident, we felt not only the support of the public, but also officers' esprit de corps and mutual support. In the face of difficulties, officers supported each other and encouraged each other. They worked from morning until late at night without any break. When officers came out from Wan Chai Police Station with some food and water, you could feel the spirit of esprit de corps and unity."

PC Tam added: "It was a great feeling when officers came out from Wan Chai Police Station to cheer us up when we passed by the station."

Public support

The four officers felt the majority of the public rallied behind them during the December 17 incident.

SSGT Lui recalled a small episode to show that the public supported the measures taken immediately after the incident.

"After the incident, several men and women asked me if they could enter a cordoned area. They said they lived in Kowloon but could not give a good reason for entering the cordoned area. At this juncture, they hurriedly left the scene amid the booing by the many on-lookers around," he said.

"On December 17 the management of some shopping centres and buildings in Wan Chai offered us the use of their toilet facilities. Some even put up notices to inform officers of this. The following day two girls handed out chocolates to officers along Harbour Road. This was a great encouragement to us!" said WSGT Leung.

PC Tam pointed out that as well as words of encouragement, the staff of a cafe in Thomson Road offered officers bread, butter and soft drinks after they had completed a sweeping operation.

SSGT Lui (second right), WSGT Leung (right), PC Lai (second left) and PC Tam are delighted to see public support for the police during HKMC