The sophistication, novelty and diversity of tactics and methods used by protests in the 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests have been noted by many scholars and news outlets around the world. They range from new principles of autonomy and decentralisation, incorporating different methods of demonstration, economic and social protest, and most notably new technological methods for organising and ensuring the security of protesters. Many of these tactics have been used or were inspired by previous protests. The sheer scale, complexity, and variety of tactics used have become a case study for mass protests around the world.
Major principles
Decentralised leadership Unlike the 2014 Hong Kong protests, the democracy movement of 2019 has taken place in a generally decentralised manner, and has been described as "impeccably organized" by the Los Angeles Times. The Civil Human Rights Front (CHRF) has a long history of organising social movements and was the organiser of the two massive protests on 9 and 16 June. Demosistō, led by Joshua Wong, who was in jail at the beginning of the movement, and the localist groups, called on supporters to participate in protests. However, unlike the 2014 Hong Kong protests, none of these groups have claimed leadership over this movement. Many pro-democracy legislators were seen at the protests but mainly took supporting roles only. This kind of decentralisation has led to increased fluidity for protesters and difficulty for officials to locate representatives for negotiations or prosecution.
On 1 July, after protesters forced their way into the Legislative Council, Wong said the act was intended "to show how the Legislative Council has never represented the voice of the people." He also said there would not have been any rallies or protests had the Legislative Council been democratically elected. However, some protesters believed that the decentralised leadership prompted protests to escalate without proper planning, evident in the storming of the LegCo building.
Chinese University of Hong Kong professor Francis Lee called this new type of decentralised, leaderless movement, the "open-source" protest model. Through a participatory process of digital democracy activists are able to collaborate by voting on tactics and brainstorming next moves in an egalitarian manner in which everybody has an equal say. Telegram chat groups and online forums with voting mechanisms to make collective decisions have facilitated this type of flexible co-ordination.
Flexible tactics
Protesters are reported to have adopted Bruce Lee’s philosophy to be "formless [and] shapeless, like water", shortened to a common motto among protesters, "be water". By moving in a mobile and agile fashion to different government offices during the 21 June protests, they aimed to bring additional pressure to bear on the government. Starting from August, protesters embraced a hit-and-run tactic (or flexible, "be water" approach to converging at assembly points and dispersing again) when the police began to ban requests for demonstrations. As the police begin to advance, protesters will retreat, though they will often show up again later in the same district or reemerge in other places in a short period of time. The metaphor has been expanded to include "Be strong like ice" when they were confronting the police force, "gather like dew" when protesters organised "flashmob" protests that were often extemporaneous, and "scatter like mist" to ensure that protesters can escape before police clearance to avoid arrest.
Another tactic is geographical dispersal. While the 2014 Hong Kong protests were centered on three locations, in the 2019 movement, demonstrations and clashes with Hong Kong Police diversified to over 20 different neighbourhoods spread throughout Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, and the New Territories. Starting from October, the flash mob strategy became more common as a result of the politicisation of the MTR metro system. Small flash mobs of protesters will show up in areas near their home and "blossom everywhere" () to avoid arrest.
Maintaining anonymity was important as protesters face up to 10-year jail sentences if they were convicted. They may also face the risks of being doxxed and harassed by Chinese netizens. To maintain their anonymity, protesters began adopting pseudonyms, locking their social media accounts, and using codes to describe their actions. According to The Verge, protesters and their supporters have to "face a future of unknown retaliation" from authorities and that "the risks range from personal and family safety to job insecurity to fear of future arrest".
Throughout the protests, efforts were made to convert the protests into a long-term political movement. Acts of dissent were incorporated into Hong Kong citizens' daily life. This allowed the momentum of the protests to carry on even if the police continued their crackdown on the protests. By diversifying protest tactics, protesters and activists were able to express their discontent towards the government and continue to contribute to the protest movement through tactics other than participating in mass marches and direct confrontations. Alternate forms of protest, such as the yellow economic circle, had a low threshold of entry and were "conscience-driven" initiatives. Political analyst Kenneth Chan believed that ultimately, these daily life protests would "[breed] a sense of self-determination and solidarity against the government" for Hong Kong people.
Unity and cohesion The "Do Not Split" () principle has helped maintain cohesion throughout the broad political spectrum of the struggle. Embracing a diversity of tactics has allowed participants to engage in different levels of action while respecting the roles that others play. This is in direct contrast to the 2014 protests, where multiple protest groups ended up criticising each other. Hong Kong political commentator Lewis Lau said, "'Do Not Split' serves as a bridge ... by promoting mutual respect for diverging views within the protest movement." Minimisation of internal conflict is key to achieving broader goals; a common phrase that has served as a reminder is "Preserve yourself and the collective; no division." Through unity, it would be more difficult for the authorities to instigate the differences between different camps in an attempt to break the protest movement apart. Solidarity between protesters and engagement with the "Do Not Split" praxis was evidenced by the two mothers' sit-in demonstrations of 14 June and 5 July and the silver-haired protest on 17 July. Tens of thousands attended the rallies, in support of the protest actions of the younger generation, while standing firm together in opposition to police brutality, Carrie Lam, and the intervention of the mainland Chinese government. Austin Ramzy from The New York Times added that the two groups shared a symbiotic relationship. While the 12 June unrest showed the limitations of peaceful marches and the value of aggression, the continuation of large-scale marches showed to the world how widespread public dissatisfaction towards the government was. According to Benny Tai, there would be support for more radical actions if peaceful marches were not successful in forcing the government to concede.
Several media organisations have described the two most influential camps among protesters: the "brave fighters" on the frontlines, and the majority "non-violent peaceful" camp that has engaged in mass demonstrations, civil disobedience, and numerous creative actions. A study about the on-going protests by researchers from several Hong Kong universities found that "most of the participants agreed that 'the maximum impact could only be achieved when peaceful assembly and confrontational actions work together.'" Many "peaceful, rational and non-violent" protesters also expressed that they will not split with the "brave fighters" despite not agreeing with their tactics. Some of them also provided assistance to them by donating supplies and leaving money for radical protesters to take public transport or by voluntarily driving them home, especially in later days when public transport was often closed before and during protests. Some also distributed free McDonald's gift certificates to the radical protesters to support their daily living, as most protesters refused to accept actual donations. Pop-up stores selling protective gadgets for the protesters and undercover clinics have also been set up to aid the protesters. Some protest sympathizers, including doctors and nurses, also volunteered to become on-field first-aiders. Some elderly people in Hong Kong who supported the movement also formed a group named Protect the Children. These volunteers would attempt to separate the police and the young protesters in the frontline in an attempt to mediate their conflicts and provide assistance.
Demonstrations Black bloc and group defences
During street protests, black bloc methods enhanced anonymity and privacy, enabling demonstrators to "be water" and function more effectively as a group. Participants in demonstrations dressed in black, and wore personal protective equipment such as hard hats and gloves. To resist police surveillance and protect against chemical weapons such as tear gas and pepper spray, face masks and goggles were popular attire. Protesters also developed a set of hand signs to aid communications and form human chains to transport supplies. As protests continued to escalate and the police began to use higher levels of riot control weaponry, activists upgraded their makeshift gear including using surfboards as shields. They also wore protective equipment including heat-resistant gloves and respirators. The 2014 Ukrainian Revolution was commonly described as an inspiration for Hong Kong protesters.
Protesters adopted different roles during demonstrations. Peaceful protesters chanted slogans, passed supplies, and volunteered as medics, while frontliners led the charge, extinguished tear gas with water, or neutralised them using objects such as traffic cones and kitchenware. Protesters have used laser pointers to distract the police, sprayed paint on surveillance cameras, and unfurled umbrellas to protect and conceal the identities of the group in action and to avoid facial recognition. When protesters departed via MTR, they often made piles of extra changes of clothes for other activists, and left money to purchase single-use tickets and avoid tracking via Octopus cards.
Offensive actions, petrol bombs, and arson
The South China Morning Post reported that the confrontational tactics used by protesters evolved from vandalism to "a now familiar pattern", in which the protesters reportedly threw bricks, petrol bombs, corrosive liquid and other projectiles at police. Radical frontline protesters used petrol bombs as a weapon of choice against police. Between 9 June and 1 October 2019, fire services answered calls of 37 incidents involving firebombs thrown by protesters; objects such as rubbish bins were frequently set on fire. In total, the Hong Kong Fire Services Department responded to 319 fires during the same period. According to Secretary for Security John Lee, protesters had thrown more than 100 petrol bombs over a weekend of street battles with police in early September. One of the most significant pyres was lit near police headquarters in Wan Chai on 31 August, with the blaze triggering the sprinkler system of a nearby hotel. Mainland Chinese-linked shops and businesses were targeted and their premises set on fire; MTR and railway stations were set ablaze, and petrol bombs hurled at police.