HONG KONG — Hong Kong pro-democracy protesters canceled planned talks with the government on electoral reforms Friday after mobs of people tried to drive them from streets they had occupied in one of the city's main shopping areas.
The Hong Kong Federation of Students, one of the groups leading the protests that swelled to the tens of thousands earlier this week, said they saw no choice but to cancel the talks.
"The government is demanding the streets be cleared. We call upon all Hong Kong people to immediately come to protect our positions and fight to the end," the group said in a statement.
Hong Kong's leader, Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying, proposed the talks late Thursday, seeking to defuse the standoff, the biggest challenge to Beijing's authority since China took control of the former British colony in 1997.
His refusal to yield to calls for his resignation angered many protesters. They demanded that the government hold someone responsible for the scuffles Friday in Kowloon's crowded Mong Kok district and other areas, the most chaotic since police used tear gas and pepper spray last weekend to try to disperse them.
Just as those tactics ended up drawing more people into the streets, the attacks on Friday drew hundreds of supporters.
In the afternoon, democracy activists linked arms and held hands as they tried to stand their ground. Police formed cordons and escorted some of the protesters away as hundreds of onlookers chanted, "Pack up!" and "Go home!"
But the tide seemed to turn in the evening, when hundreds assembled, shouting at the opponents of the protesters and haranguing police to protect them. Police ended up escorting some of the mob of people in their 30s and older out of the area.
The chaos prompted orders from police and other top officials to all to avoid violence and go home.
"We should not use violence or disrupt social order in any situation," Leung said. "All people gathering in those areas should disperse as soon as possible and restore social order, so that daily lives will be restored to normal."
It was unclear if the people trying to drive out the protesters were organized, though some wore blue ribbons signaling their support for the mainland Chinese government, while the protesters have worn yellow ribbons. At least some were local residents fed up with the inconvenience of blocked streets and closed shops, and were perhaps encouraged to take matters into their own hands by police calls for the protesters to clear the streets.
"It's not about whether I support their cause or not. It's about whether what they are doing is legal or not," said Donald Chan, 45. "It is illegal. It has brought chaos to the city."
During the worst of the disturbances, police appeared hard-pressed to keep order as the two sides tussled in a tense standoff. Some people emerged bloodied from the fracas. Occasional heavy rain showers did not noticeably thin the crowds.
The protesters have stayed in the streets since Sept. 26, pledging to preserve Hong Kong's Western-style legal system and civil liberties. They want the Chinese government to reverse a decision requiring all candidates for Hong Kong's first election for its leader in 2017 to be approved by a mostly pro-Beijing committee. The demonstrators want open nominations.