More than two months of pro-democracy protests that transformed the heart of Hong Kong 's financial district could be coming to an abrupt end this week . Police have announced that they plan Thursday to clear the main protest camp , which sprawls along a multi-lane highway next to the city 's government headquarters . Protest leaders say they do n't intend to put up a fight , but it remains unclear if other factions in the decentralized movement will resist the police action . Public support for the student-led protests swelled in late September after police used tear gas and other tough tactics in a botched attempt to disperse demonstrators . The Umbrella Movement , as the demonstrations became known , made headlines around the world , prompting speculation about how the Chinese government , which has ultimate control over Hong Kong , would react . Losing public support . The protesters have held onto a big stretch of highway in the city 's Admiralty district since then , populating it with rows of colorful tents , outdoor classrooms and art installations . But while support remains for the demonstrators ' cause -- a call for Hong Kong to be able to choose its next leader from an open field of candidates -- enthusiasm for their methods has faded . In a poll in November , just 13 % of Hong Kongers surveyed said the street occupations should continue . Divisions deepened between different groups of demonstrators last week after a failed attempt to surround the government headquarters led to clashes with police . The Chinese government has steadfastly rejected the protesters ' demands , calling the movement illegal and letting Hong Kong authorities deal with the situation on the ground . Police and bailiffs to move in . Police are now taking advantage of a court injunction requested by a bus company that orders the clearing of some of the highways blocked by the protest camp . `` The illegal road occupations have lasted for more than two months , and the daily lives and livelihoods of the general public have been seriously affected , '' Assistant Police Commissioner Cheung Tak-keung said Tuesday . He said police would on Thursday assist bailiffs in clearing the areas covered by the court order and would then move to reopen the other blocked roads . They will also remove the much smaller protest camp in the shopping district of Causeway Bay `` at an appropriate time , '' he said . The police plan appears to spell the end of the street protests . Authorities dismantled the other key encampment , in the working-class district of Mong Kok , last month . 'The end of this phase ' Leaders of the student groups that have spearheaded the demonstrations said they would remain at the Admiralty protest site but would n't physically resist the police . `` We will sit outside the injunction area . We will stay true to the spirit of civil disobedience -- remain peaceful and bear the legal consequences of our action , '' said Alex Chow , secretary general of the Hong Kong Federation of Students . Their final sit-in would `` mark the end of this phase of the occupation , '' Chow said Tuesday , according to the South China Morning Post , a local newspaper . Joshua Wong , the student figure who has become the face of the protest movement , has also urged protesters to remain peaceful . Wong , a leader of the student group Scholarism , abandoned a hunger strike at the weekend that was aimed at getting the Hong Kong government to hold talks with protesters . ' I 'll let them arrest me ' One protester at the site , Jerry Lam , said Wednesday that he planned to stay there until the police came . `` I 'll let them arrest me if it comes to that , and I think everyone here in this camp feels the same , '' Lam , 24 , told CNN as he folded up his tent . But another demonstrator , Gypsy Wong , 22 , said she was packing up and would n't be there when the police came . `` Even if we resist , there 's no use , '' she told CNN , remembering a night of clashes she witnessed earlier in the movement . `` I felt so helpless when the police were charging down upon us , '' she said . `` That night I cried , and I do n't want to see that again . '' Lam said that whatever happened , the clearance of the protest camp would n't erase `` the people 's spirit . '' `` Before the Umbrella Movement , Hong Kong people did n't really pay attention to politics . But now , everyone cares , '' he said . `` Our generation will pass this story onto the next generation , and they 'll know what we did . ''
Police say they plan to clear the main pro-democracy protest camp Thursday . `` I 'll let them arrest me if it comes to that , '' one demonstrator tells CNN . Student leaders urge protesters to remain peaceful . TL;DR Hong Kong police have cleared out a major pro-democracy encampment in Admiralty district of central Hong Kong, ending weeks of tense standoffs between demonstrators and police.