Beijing has tried to distance itself from chief executive Carrie Lam's bill. Photo / AP
Beijing has tried to distance itself from chief executive Carrie Lam's bill. Photo / AP
Tens of thousands of protesters jammed the streets of Hong Kong yesterday in another mass rally despite a pledge by Carrie Lam, the city's embattled Chief Executive, to suspend a controversial new extradition bill.
Lam tried to strike a conciliatory tone on Saturday as she delayed the bill after a tumultuous week that saw the worst political violence since the UK handed the city over to China in 1997. Tens of thousands of demonstrators clashed with police who repelled them with tear gas and rubber bullets.
The escalation came three days after Lam doubled down on the law despite a record-breaking rally a week ago that organisers say drew more than one million people onto the streets.
Critics fear that the sweeping bill puts foreign and Chinese nationals, even those just transiting through Hong Kong, at risk of unfair treatment by China's mistrusted and opaque justice system, and damages the city's reputation as a safe global financial hub.
Lam's about-turn and pledge to listen to the public was immediately rejected by protest leaders, who demanded that she fully scrap the bill, resign and apologise for hard-handed police tactics.
Aside from the overnight rally, activists are encouraging the public to support strikes by workers, teachers and students today. Mourners laid flowers on the pavement near where a man fell to his death a day earlier after hanging a protest banner on scaffolding.
Demonstrators expressed a lack of trust in the Chief Executive, who they accuse of being in thrall to Beijing, with some angry that the concessions came only after protests had turned violent.
Jimmy Sham, from the Civil Human Rights Front, the protest group, compared her offer to a "knife" that had been plunged into the city. "It's almost reached our heart. Now the government said they won't push it, but they also refuse to pull it out."
Protesters march through the streets against an extradition bill. Photo / AP
Jason Ng, from the Progressive Lawyers Group, said that people remained incensed by Lam's refusal "to take responsibility for the excessive police force unleashed on protesters and for tearing society asunder".
British Prime Minister Theresa May's resignation was even held up as a shining example that Lam should follow. Leung Kwok-hung, a social activist leading the protests, said: "Theresa May resigned for a lack of leadership. She can't provide a Brexit plan and divided Britain. So, Carrie Lam, listen to me, follow the step of Theresa May, be courageous, step down. Otherwise, you will be brought down by Hong Kong people."
Lam's position became more precarious after China began to distance itself from the bill. Liu Xiaoming, China's ambassador to London, on Friday became the first senior Chinese official to publicly dismiss suggestions that Beijing had pushed for the expansion of Hong Kong's extradition legislation. The Chinese media reported that Lam then met Han Zheng, the Chinese vice-premier, for talks in Shenzhen.
China's Government, which recently faced international criticism on the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, said that it supported the decision to suspend the bill. Geng Shuang, the Foreign Ministry spokesman, called the move an attempt to "listen more widely to the views of the community and restore calm".
Lam did not set a deadline for the reintroduction of the bill. "I feel deep sorrow and regret that the deficiencies in our work and various other factors have stirred up substantial controversies and disputes in society following the relatively calm periods of the past two years," she said.
Tens of thousands of protesters carrying posters and banners march through the streets as they continue to protest an extradition bill. Photo / AP
Ray Lo, 19, a student in Hong Kong, planned to protest. She was suspicious of Lam's motives for postponing the legislation, theorising that the leader was keen to nullify protests before a visit by Chinese officials for the anniversary of the British handover on July 1.
About Hong Kong's under fire leader
• Who: Carrie Lam, Chief Executive since 2017. She is Hong Kong's first female leader and its fourth since Britain ended its colonial rule in 1997.
• Age: 62.
• Known for: Lam has a reputation as an efficient and pragmatic administrator.
• Background: She grew up in Wanchai, the fourth of five children. She attended a Catholic girls school, the University of Hong Kong and later Cambridge University. She is married to a mathematician and has two sons. They are British citizens, but Lam is not. She began her civil service career in the 1980s.
• Political vulnerability: She was not directly elected by the territory's people, but ushered into office by the vote of a 1194-member committee dominated by pro-Beijing elites — despite being far less popular than her main rival. She now finds herself caught between a public that never truly backed her, and leaders in Beijing who want her to push through unpopular measures.
• What the protesters want: Full withdrawal of the extradition bill, an apology for the aggressive police tactics and Lam's resignation.
• What about China's role: The Chinese Government has largely remained aloof from the controversy, preferring to let Lam take the heat or even make her a scapegoat, according to some analysts.
