Indonesians Bound for Hong Kong Forced to Wait as Protesters Trigger HK Airport Shutdown
Jakarta. Airport operator Angkasa Pura II has urged passengers bound for Hong Kong to check their flight information with the airlines since a massive demonstration – in protest of a bill that would have made it possible to extradite people from Hong Kong to China – has triggered a shutdown at the city's airport.
Garuda Indonesia, Cathay Pacific and China Airlines all have daily direct flights from Jakarta to Hong Kong. Cathay Dragon has a daily direct flight from Medan to Hong Kong.
Angkasa Pura II operates several airports in Indonesia, including the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport near Jakarta and the Kualanamu International Airport in Medan, North Sumatra.
On Monday, a Cathay Pacific flight from Jakarta to Hong Kong was canceled, Angkasa Pura II corporate secretary Achmad Rifai said in a statement on Tuesday.
"We urge all passengers who have tickets to Hong Kong to confirm their departure schedules with the airlines," Achmad said.
Hong Kong's airport was brought to a standstill on Monday after protesters brought their demonstration that had begun in June to the busy international travel hub.
Hundreds of passengers were stranded at the airport as flights were canceled. CNN reported that 150 outgoing and 147 incoming flights were canceled on Monday.
More than 70,000 flights passed through the Hong Kong International Airport last year.
The protesters are planning to rally at the airport again on Tuesday.
The city mayor appeared at the scene on Monday saying she believed the government was starting to gain control of the situation.
A video was posted on Twitter on Monday night claiming the Chinese government has deployed troops to the nearby city of Shenzhen.
Beijing are sending military force from China mainland to Hong Kong. Here is the situation at Shenzhen border :#HongKongProtesters #HongKong #HongKongExtraditionLaw pic.twitter.com/9SRbrmQyNU
— Guillaume Helleu (@helleuguillaume) August 12, 2019
According to the Hong Kong International Airport website, all of Monday's canceled flights will be moved to Tuesday.
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