- Police had denied organisers permission for gathering at iconic Senado Square tourist spot
- Six men and one woman detained as police also stop and search group of men in white
Macau police detained seven people on Monday at the site of a planned rally in support of Hong Kong's anti-government protesters.
A Hongkonger was among the six men and one woman held after dozens of people dressed in black descended on the iconic Senado Square tourist spot at around 8pm.
In a rare move, police had earlier denied permission for the gathering to go ahead citing security concerns, and organisers had asked people not to attend after heavily promoting the event online.
Police had deployed dozens of officers before people showed up said AntOnio Ng Kuok-cheong, a pro-democracy legislator in the casino city.
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Still, dozens defied the ban, and police carried out identity checks and detained a number of those who had shown up. Two of those held, who were among four locals, two people from mainland China, and the Hongkonger, told local media they had just gone to the spot to meet friends, and did not know why police had checked their identities.
A Macau police spokesman told the Post all but two of those questioned had been released, with two locals still detained in the early hours of Tuesday morning.
Meanwhile, officers also stopped and searched dozens of men dressed in white near the site. The group were said to have been lingering in the area, and were reportedly waving the Chinese national flag.
Ng said the high-profile move by police was in line with the local pro-establishment's recent aggressive policy of stifling support for Hong Kong protesters.
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