Hong Kong, June 21: Tens of hundreds of people took to the streets of Hong Kong on Friday morning calling for leader Carrie Lam to step down from the administration and calling to withdraw a controversial extradition bill that would allow suspects in the territory to be sent to mainland China for prosecution.
According to Al-Jazeera news reports, demonstrations kicked off at around 7 am (23G on Thursday) around the Legislative Council Complex. People were asked to renew their demonstrations after a protest Thursday deadline for Lam-led government to respond to protest demand to withdraw the extradition immediately.
“We want to fight for our freedom,” 17-year-old high school student Chan Pak-lam told Reuters.
“We want the law to be withdrawn, not suspended. I will stay here until tonight, at 10 pm maybe. If the government doesn’t respond, we will come again.”
Protest organizers have also called for a go-slow demonstration at public transport and roads, and further urged people to summon in different parts of the territory to show their support.
Lam has suspended the bill, which permits Hong Kong authority to sent suspects to mainland China for prosecution, but some student protest group called on her to withdraw the bill, setting a deadline by Thursday.
They also demanded the government to drop the charges leveled against the detained marchers during the last week’s demonstration, and charge the security forces what they called as violent actions, and also stop calling them riot.
The group pledged to summon on Friday at the Legislative Council if their demands weren’t met, which would likely rage the friction in the financial market and further raise new issues about China-backed Lam’s ability to lead the territory.
Lam has on Tuesday hinted the end to the controversial extradition bill after seeing violent protests in the territory since the ex-British colony returned to Chinese rule in 1997. In a media conference, Hong Kong leaders apologized for the state of turmoil but however, refused to withdraw the bill.
When asked whether she would step down from the office, Lam refused to do so, stating important work still remained undone ahead in the coming three years, which would eventually bring her to the end of her tenure.
Also read:
- Hong Kong leader Lam signals ‘end’ to extradition bill but refuses to step down
- Mass protest in Hong Kong after leader Lam ignores deadline to scrap extradition bill