Reuters photographer Bobby Yip took a series of portraits of people taking part in the “Occupy Central” protests in Hong Kong, and asked them why they had joined the demonstrations. China rules Hong Kong under a “one country, two systems” formula that accords the territory limited democracy. Tens of thousands of mostly student protesters are demanding Beijing give them full democracy, with the freedom to nominate election candidates. The unrest is the worst in Hong Kong since China resumed its rule over the former British colony in 1997. (Photo by Carlos Barria/Reuters)

With a presence in nearly every city and town across Iran, the paramilitary Basij volunteer corps has an ever-increasing influence on life in the Islamic Republic. Authorities created the Basij, which means mobilization in Persian, just after the country's 1979 Islamic Republic. It is part of Iran's powerful Revolutionary Guard. Photo: In this Thursday, August 22, 2013 photo, a female member of the Basij paramilitary militia aims a rifle as a trainer looks over her shoulder in Tehran, Iran. (Photo by Ebrahim Noroozi/AP Photo)

Parade-goers walk in the annual West Indian Day Parade on September 02, 2019 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The annual celebration of Caribbean culture is one of the largest of its kind and features dozens of floats and costumed participants that make their way down Flatbush Avenue. (Photo by Yana Paskova/Getty Images)

In this handout photo provided by Warner Brothers Pictures and Village Roadshow Pictures, Tom Cruise plays Lieutenant Colonel Bill Cage, a soldier who replays his last day while trying to fight aliens, in director Doug Liman's “All You Need Is Kill”. The film is set to premiere on March 14, 2014. (Photo by David James/Warner Brothers Pictures)

Revellers take part in the the 70th Annual Columbus Day Parade in New York, October 13, 2014. (Photo by Eduardo Munoz/Reuters)

A woman whose livelihood depends on selling recyclable wastes collects trash from a dumping site while surrounded by Marabou storks on the outskirts of Uganda's capital Kampala March 31, 2015. (Photo by James Akena/Reuters)

A supporter of former US President Donald Trump waits outside of Trump's President Day event at the Hilton Palm Beach Airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, on February 20, 2023. (Photo by Giorgio Viera/AFP Photo)

North Korean dance during an evening gala as they celebrate the country's 76th founding anniversary at Kim Il Sung Square in Pyongyang, North Korea Sunday, September 8, 2024. (Photo by Jon Chol Jin/AP Photo)