A riot broke out in the early morning of Christmas Day, 25 December 1981 in Central, Hong Kong.
In a minor road accident, a car driver accidentally hit a pedestrian near the Mandarin Oriental hotel around 1:30 am, arousing unrest among the youth in the area that eventually evolved into a riot.
The same day, the Government of Hong Kong increased the number of policemen patrolling major business areas and kept cars away from the Central District.
The day after the incident, Secretary for Home Affairs Denis Bray dismissed characterisations of the event as rioting, calling it "just some disturbances caused by kids who had too much to drink".
[1] Another disturbance broke out early New Year's Day of 1982, when crowds of youth began heckling revellers.