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Protesters Swell in the Streets of Hong Kong Calling for Leader to Resign

Protesters are demanding that Carrie Lam resign and have vowed to continue taking to the streets until the bill is withdrawn.

Protesters Swell in the Streets of Hong Kong Calling for Leader to Resign
Police officers stand guard as protesters march during a rally in Hong Kong, China. (Photographer: Kyle Lam/Bloomberg)

(Bloomberg) -- Tens of thousands of demonstrators poured into central Hong Kong as organizers remained defiant even after the city’s leader suspended consideration of the China-backed extradition plan that sparked some of the biggest protests in the city in decades.

Organizers pressed ahead with a march Sunday afternoon, following the same route as last week’s demonstration, when hundreds of thousands filed for hours through the center of the city. They are demanding that Chief Executive Carrie Lam resign and have vowed to continue taking to the streets until the bill is withdrawn.

Peaceful crowds dressed largely in black had filled Victoria Park around the 2:30 p.m. gathering time called by organizers, and began marching toward Hong Kong’s Legislative Council building. One sign read: “Help Hong Kong. R.I.P.” Others chanted one word: “Retract.” Many carried umbrellas, which have been used as protection from pepper spray fired by police in past protests. Marchers in black also walked toward the police headquarters in Admiralty, ground zero for clashes earlier this week between demonstrators and police.

Protesters Swell in the Streets of Hong Kong Calling for Leader to Resign

“Our demands are clear and firm,” Jimmy Sham, one of the main protest leaders, said as he addressed the crowd. Among his calls were for the bill’s withdrawal, the retraction of Lam’s characterization of protesters as rioters, and her resignation.

Only Delayed

Opposition politician Claudia Mo, who’s been outspoken throughout the extradition standoff and attended Sunday’s protest, called the suspension “just a postponement.”

“The plan is just being delayed. It’s not the matter of what, it’s a matter of when. So I am coming out,” she said.

Protesters Swell in the Streets of Hong Kong Calling for Leader to Resign

Lam referred to the protesters as rioters after a Wednesday demonstration sparked clashes with authorities that left more than 80 people hurt. Police used tear gas, rubber bullets and batons to dispel protesters trying to enter the main legislative building.

Lam’s decision to suspend the bill was a stunning climb-down on her government’s legislative centerpiece, which was backed by authorities in Beijing. The measure would let Hong Kong extradite fugitives facing jail sentences of more than seven years to mainland China, Macau and Taiwan. Opponents fear the legislation would erode the legal wall separating the city’s justice system from the mainland and allow Beijing to target its political enemies.

Protesters Swell in the Streets of Hong Kong Calling for Leader to Resign

The first casualty of the demonstrations was reported on Saturday. A man who held a protest banner for hours over a roadway in the central district of Admiralty fell to his death, the Hong Kong Free Press reported. A memorial is due to be held Sunday during the protests.

Murder in Taiwan

The proposed legislation was initially prompted by a murder case in Taiwan, Lam said. A Hong Kong man killed his 19-year-old girlfriend and admitted to the murder after returning to Hong Kong. Lam said Saturday that she would now have to tell the victim’s family that the man may not be extradited for the crime. The bill was also aimed at preventing Hong Kong from becoming “a haven” for mainland criminals, she said.

“This bill has very laudable objectives not only domestically but also internationally,” Lam said Saturday in announcing her decision. “The enactment of this bill will help to raise Hong Kong’s international profile and also demonstrate that we are a place with excellent rule of law, not only for our own citizens but also in contribution to the combating of serious crimes for the transnational basis.”

Lam’s move was “equivalent to a withdrawal,” lawmaker Regina Ip, a member of the city’s Executive Council, told television channel TVB. “It’s just that the government doesn’t want to use the term withdrawal.”

Protesters Swell in the Streets of Hong Kong Calling for Leader to Resign

While Beijing expressed repeated support for the proposal, several Western governments raised concern that it undermines the “one country, two systems” framework that guaranteed free speech, capitalist markets and independent courts in Hong Kong after its 1997 return. U.S. lawmakers had threatened to reconsider the city’s special status that supported $38 billion in trade last year.

The extradition bill would apply to Hong Kong citizens, foreign residents and even people passing through on business. It risks leaving residents at the mercy of what the U.S. described as China’s “capricious legal system.” Business groups argue the city would lose its appeal as a financial center.

Highlights from Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam’s news briefing:
  • Declined to withdraw bill, saying she believes it’s necessary
  • Set no deadline for reintroducing it, only that it won’t come before year’s end
  • Said Chinese authorities supported the decision, but it was her idea
  • Expressed regret and sorrow for poor communication
  • Sidestepped repeated questions on whether she’ll resign
  • Backed the police description of Wednesday’s protest as a riot

Lam, who took office two years ago promising to heal divisions exposed by the mass Occupy protests in 2014 and the emergence of a small but assertive independence, expressed remorse that the proposal had become so controversial. She said the government should focus on improving people’s livelihoods while attempting to build support for the extradition bill.

--With assistance from Fion Li, Tracy Alloway, Stephen Engle, Chloe Whiteaker, Elaine To and Stanley James.

To contact the reporters on this story: Annie Lee in Hong Kong at olee42@bloomberg.net;Shawna Kwan in Hong Kong at wkwan35@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Andrew Davis at abdavis@bloomberg.net, ;Brendan Scott at bscott66@bloomberg.net, Karen Leigh

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