At a basketball game between China and Australia, Chinese “nationalists” and Hong Kong human rights demonstrators got into an altercation.
The tumultuous scene at the FIBA World Cup qualifier on Thursday night at Melbourne’s John Cain Arena astounded the crowd.
The activist Max Mok claims that after chanting “free East Turkestan” and “Hong Kong independence,” he was “assaulted.”
He can be seen shouting and brandishing a poster in the video before being shoved by a bigger man while his girlfriend tries to stop him.
The release of Mirzat Taher, a Uyghur political prisoner detained in China, was demanded on Mr. Mok’s poster.
Another protester is waving a Tibetan flag, which has served as a representation of the Tibetan independence cause since the 1960s.
The flag is prohibited on the Chinese mainland because the communist superpower considers Tibet to be part of its territory and so believes the People’s Republic of China flag should be used to symbolize it.
On Thursday night, security at John Cain Arena was compelled to interfere to end the altercation, and they later requested police support.
Victoria Police downplayed the altercation and said there were few demonstrators.
‘Police were pleased with the overall crowd behaviour, however, seven spectators were ejected for breaching the conditions of entry during the game,’ a spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia.
‘There was no physical violence or any injuries related to these incidents.’
The Chinese team made a late-third-quarter charge, but the Boomers narrowly held them off to win the game 76-69.
With 33 seconds remaining, Jack White made a corner three-pointer to give Australia a seven-point lead, sealing the victory for the green and gold.
Australia is already 4-0 up in their World Cup qualifying campaign and is assured a spot in the next round, but they still need victories against Japan on Friday and China once more on Sunday to make the draw as kind as possible.
