Troops Assemble On Hong Kong Border

Hundreds from the Chinese paramilitary, People’s Armed Police, have been deployed in Shenzhen

The Shenzhen Bay Sports Centre rises along the shore with the green hills of Hong Kong visible across the water. It normally bustles with a variety of youth sports programmes and dance, art and language academies, including one that advertises a “Hong Kong Style Education.”

In recent days, however, it has become a staging ground for olive-green military transports and armoured personnel carriers that arrived on August 11 and disgorged hundreds of security officers from the People’s Armed Police, a Chinese paramilitary force, who are loudly running through daily exercises and drills.

By massing the troops within view of Hong Kong, the semi-autonomous territory convulsed by protests, China’s Communist Party is delivering a strong warning that the use of force remains an option for Beijing. It is also a stark reminder that military power remains the be-drock of the party’s legitimacy.