Melancholy celebrations marked the arrival of 2021 around the world on Tuesday, as funny partygoers raised a glass in hopes of having happier times in fire-ravaged Australia and protecting Hong Kong.
More than a million people descended on Sydney Harbor as a low fog reminded Australians of the ongoing forest fires that have been causing huge swathes of New South Wales, the nation’s most populous state.
More than 1,000 homes and at least 12 people have died in wildfires that burned the nation, with much of the damage in New South Wales.
And while some cities canceled their annual New Year’s fireworks celebrations, the beloved Sydney Harbor show was allowed to continue as scheduled as a showcase of national resistance.
Meanwhile, in Hong Kong, the annual fireworks display over Victoria Harbor was canceled due to security concerns stemming from ongoing pro-democracy protests in the semi-autonomous Chinese city and the former British colony. .
Some roads were closed and barriers blocked traffic in the Lan Kwai Fong nightlife neighborhood, where protesters celebrated 2021 with chants of change.
Lan Kwai Fong partygoers celebrated 2021 at 11:00 a.m. EST by raising their hands and chanting their familiar phrase, “five demands, not one less,” in calling for universal suffrage, withdrawing charges against arrested protesters, investigating the police brutality, ending by calling protesters “riots” and a commitment to never file a controversial extradition project.
An hour earlier, Tokyo’s festivities rang in 2021 at 10 a.m. EST, with many jokes at temples and shrines, offering incense with their prayers to celebrate the passing of 2020.
It is the first January 1 of the new Reiwa era that began in May, after Emperor Akihito retired and his son Naruhito became emperor. Japanese citizens also said they were waiting this summer when the nation is set to host the Olympics, which will begin on July 24th.
“We have a new era and so I hope things get better, even though 2020 was also a good year because nothing bad happened,” said Masashi Ogami, 38, who ran a wine stall. of sweet rice at Tokyo’s Zojoji Temple.
Thousands of people in India began protesting in 2021 against Prime Minister Narendra Modi and a citizenship law that said it would discriminate against Muslims and go against India’s secular constitution.
In New Delhi, on the brink of its second coldest winter in more than a century, 25-year-old protester Irshad Alam, his wife and his son endured the New Year’s cold to sound like 2021 and assert its point against the government.
“It’s freezing here,” he said in Delhi, where it hit midnight at 13:30 EST. “But we’re still here because we care about that move.”
Before Moscow’s 2021, which began at 4 p.m. EST, President Vladimir Putin urged his citizens to gather around his vision of a modern Russia.
“We live in turbulent, dynamic and controversial times, but we can and should do everything for Russia to develop successfully and for everything in our lives to only change for the better,” Putin said in his annual statement engraved on the nation.
While Moscow is usually a picturesque country of winter wonders at this time of year, there was no snow in the nation’s capital, as mercury hovered just above freezing.
The snow was moved to some downtown neighborhoods, to melt shortly after it was dumped.
Pope Francis greeted pilgrims on Tuesday in St. Peter’s Square in Vatican City when a woman suddenly grabbed him. After reaching out to touch a child, the pope pulled away from the crowd only for a nearby woman to grab his hand and pull the pontiff.
Francis seemed to be in pain and pulled his arm away from the woman.
In Paris, President Emmanuel Macron sounded the new year with promises to reform pension plans. Macron gave a public television speech on the subject on Tuesday, marking the 27th consecutive day of transport strikes.
“But I feel the fears that are emerging,” Macron said. “For you, with the trade unions who want it, I hope the Government finds the way to a quick compromise.”
Macron’s presidency has been plagued by protests and protracted strikes, as citizens worried about rising tax increases and uncertain retirements vent their frustration.
The last stretch of protests by traffic workers has launched normal lane operations, including the Palace of Versailles, which it said would be closed on Tuesday due to strikes.
Associated Press and Reuters contributed.