Pro-democracy protesters continue to line the streets of Hong Kong today as China begins National Day celebrations, showing little sign of flagging momentum in their campaign to increase pressure on the pro-Beijing government.

Protests have spread to Tsim Sha Tsui, one of the city's most popular shopping areas for mainland Chinese, which would normally do roaring trade during the annual national holiday.

Scores of protesters also stood outside the government headquarters near the National Day ceremony at Bauhinia Square on the waterfront, booing as China's national anthem was played.

Tensions between protesters and police eased on Monday after tear gas, pepper spray and baton charges were used over the weekend to try to quell the unrest.

But there are widespread fears that police may return to using force as Wednesday's celebrations begin.

The pro-Beijing Hong Kong government has condemned the protesters' actions as illegal, officially backed by the Chinese Foreign Ministry' statement yesterday urging the Hong Kong government to handle the situation according to the law.

The protests represent one of the biggest political challenges for Beijing since it violently crushed pro-democracy protests in Tiananmen Square in 1989.

Sign up to our free newsletters

Get the best updates straight to your inbox:
Please select at least one mailing list.

You can unsubscribe at any time by clicking the link in the footer of our emails. We use Mailchimp as our marketing platform. By subscribing, you acknowledge that your information will be transferred to Mailchimp for processing.