Hong Kong is still on the razor’s edge between revolution and crackdown. And the police look like they are beginning the crackdown.

In the wake of the death of 22-year-old Alex Chow Tsz-lok, protestors had called for a general strike by blocking traffic on Monday morning. The reason for Chow’s death is disputed – he died of injuries after a fall from a parking garage, where riot police were reportedly “conducting dispersal operations of a protest nearby,” according to the Hong Kong Free Press. It’s clear that the protestors have decided that the police are to blame for his death. Universities were shut down on Monday – all classes canceled – and police have now fired upon protestors.

In an unprecedented action since the protests began, riot police entered multiple university campuses, including Hong Kong University, the Hong Kong Polytechnic University and the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

Photo: Telegram. #hongkong pic.twitter.com/va0QTIApxu

— Hong Kong Free Press (@HongKongFP) November 11, 2019

One young protestor was shot at point-blank range by police – and it was caught on video. The video can be seen at the link, and I do warn you, it’s just as terrible as you think it will be.

Protesters had been blocking roads at an intersection outside Tai On Building in Sai Wan Ho. At around 7:15am, a police officer tried to give chase to multiple masked men before he pulled out a service pistol and pointed it at them, according to a live stream by Cupid Producer. He then grabbed a protester in white and shot another protester in black at close range.”

Another black-clad protester appeared to try and grab the officer’s gun. The officer then fired two more shots. It is unclear if either round hit a person.”

Bloodstains were seen on the ground where the two had been subdued. One protester appeared to be conscious as he responded to onlookers who asked for his name, however, the other protester was unresponsive.”

Angry crowds confronted police officers, who deployed pepper spray in return. A woman appeared to approach the unconscious protester but was wrestled down by a riot police officer.”

The two protesters were taken away in an ambulance shortly after.”

The protestor who was shot is reportedly in critical condition.

Also caught on video: a police officer on a motorcycle attempting to run over protestors, eventually hitting some before speeding off.

Of course, this is going to bring all the simmering tension between the pro-democracy groups and the Hong Kong government, which is just a proxy for China, back to a full roaring boil, especially if these protestors end up dying from their injuries. Beijing, of course, doesn’t care. They want the crackdown – and it’s possible that the only thing staying their hand is the fact that if they do, it will be broadcast for the entire world to see. But soon, even that deterrent won’t be enough to stop them. China wants these protests to stop, but did they make it clear to the Hong Kong government that it either happens with or without their cooperation?

Has #China ordered the #HongKong police to shoot protestors? The especially aggressive police actions in the past few hours–the shootings and the motorcycle incident–cannot be coincidence. https://t.co/cFnnJE7Mmc

— Gordon G. Chang (@GordonGChang) November 11, 2019

This weekend marked the 30th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall. In an op-ed for the Dallas News, Senator Ted Cruz drew a straight line from the communists of 30 years ago to the ones controlling China today.

As the Chinese Communist Party continues to encroach on the autonomy of Hong Kong and eliminate the democratic norms there, the cause for freedom has never been greater.”

Today, Hong Kong is the new Berlin.”

China poses the most significant long-term geopolitical threat facing America and our allies. It is modernizing its military with stolen American technology and intellectual property, and China is using economic blackmail to coerce its neighbors and countries around the world.”

And much like the people in the Soviet bloc experienced, the Chinese Communist Party engages in routine censorship and surveillance of its citizens and commits atrocious human rights offenses. They have created a 1984-style dystopia, with pervasive surveillance powered by innovative technology. Millions of detained Uighurs and other religious minorities are languishing in concentration camps while Falun Gong practitioners are allegedly murdered so their organs can be harvested.”

All tyrants, including those of the Chinese Communist Party, fear the truth. And they fear dissidents.”

China might fear these dissidents, but that won’t stop them from shooting as many of them as they can first. And as we know from history, revolutions usually pay the price of freedom in blood. That payment might be starting right now in Hong Kong.

Featured image: flag of Hong Kong, via Pixabay, Pixabay license free for commercial use