Hong Kong prepares for pro-democracy march amid extradition bill anger

FILE PHOTO - Anti-extradition graffiti is seen outside the police headquarters, after a rally ahead of the G20 summit, urging the international community to back their demands for the government to withdraw the extradition bill, in Hong Kong, China - Reuters

HONG KONG (Reuters): Hong Kong authorities called for calm ahead of Monday’s annual pro-democracy march, with widespread anger over an extradition bill expected to lead to large crowds after high-profile protests this month against the proposal.

More than a million people have taken to the streets at times over the past three weeks to vent their anger and frustration at Hong Kong’s Beijing-backed leader Carrie Lam, posing the greatest popular challenge to Chinese leader Xi Jinping since he came to power in 2012.

China is also grappling with a trade war with Washington, a faltering economy and South China Sea tensions. 

Monday’s anniversary of the handover of the former British colony to Beijing in 1997 has been marked in recent years by deepening despondency about what many Hong Kong residents see as a relentless march towards mainland control.  This came to a head on 12 June when protests against a proposal that would allow people to be sent to mainland China for trial led to police firing rubber bullets and tear gas near the heart of Hong Kong’s financial centre, sending plumes of smoke billowing among some of the world’s tallest skyscrapers.

Hong Kong’s Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung appealed for calm ahead of Monday’s rally and said in his blog on Sunday that the Government has learned from its mistakes.

“It is imperative to restore social order and tranquillity as soon as possible, stabilise the business environment and bring Hong Kong back on track,” Cheung said. 

Lam, who has apologised for the upheaval, has not been seen in public since 18 June, suspended the extradition bill after some of Hong Kong’s biggest and most violent protests in decades, but stopped short of demands to scrap it. 

Activists are also demanding the Government drop all charges against those arrested during the protests, charge police with excessive use of force and stop referring to the demonstrations as a riot, which can bring a heavier jail sentence.

But in a show of support for the police, thousands gathered in heavy rain and sweltering heat, some waving the Chinese flag, and observed a moment of silence. The police estimated 53,000 attended Sunday’s rally.