AKIPRESS.COM - Just as Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement appeared to be losing steam, public support for the protesters has swelled again in the wake of video footage showing police allegedly beating a demonstrator, reports Bloomberg.

Images captured on Oct. 15 that appear to show Ken Tsang, a member of the Civic Party, being taken by police officers to a corner at Tamar Park and repeatedly hit and kicked, have renewed anger toward the police.

“They are dogs,” said John Chu, a 27-year-old corporate finance employee at a Hong Kong boutique investment bank, as he pointed to police blocking access to the offices of Chief Executive C.Y Leung. “I’m against violence against the public.”

He showed up last night after work in Admiralty after seeing the video and learning of the arrests of 45 people as police drove back protesters who had seized the central Lung Wo Road underpass near the city government’s headquarters.

The images drew questions from lawmakers and rekindled public ire following two weeks of relative restraint by both police and the protesters who have occupied roads in downtown Hong Kong since Sept. 28. The tussle over the city’s streets began to escalate again this week after police shrank the areas controlled by demonstrators, who are seeking unfettered elections in 2017 without China vetting candidates through a committee.