DHAKA: Hong Kong leader Leung Chun-ying said on Sunday that the government will launch a new round of consultations on electoral reform shortly, following a weekend of violent clashes between police and pro-democracy activists calling for greater freedoms.

Leung was speaking as police barricaded city streets to block in thousands of pro-democracy demonstrators surrounding the government headquarters after they accelerated a plan to shut down the heart of the global financial hub.

He did not provide a time-frame for consultations, reports The Straits Times.

It was his first address to protesters since students launched a demonstration on Monday to call for greater democracy and demand that he meet them to discuss electoral reforms.

BDST: 1736 HRS, SEP 28, 2014