Thousands protest in Hong Kong over extradition law
Hong Kong was guaranteed the right to retain its own legal systems for 50 years following its handover from British to Chinese rule.
Tens of thousands of protesters marched through Hong Kong to voice their opposition to government-sponsored legislation that would allow people to be extradited to mainland China to face charges.
The massive protest took place three days before Hong Kong’s government plans to bring the bill to the full legislature, bypassing the committee process, in a bid to win approval by the end of the month.
“What can we do to get Carrie Lam to listen to us, how many people have to come out to make her reconsider listening to the public?” said Miu Wong, a 24-year-old office worker who joined the protest.
Hong Kong currently limits such extraditions to jurisdictions with which it has existing extradition agreements or to others on an individual basis under a law passed before 1997.
China was excluded because of concerns over its poor record on legal independence and human rights. In recent years, mainland authorities have gone after opponents by accusing them of dubious crimes such as tax evasion, crystallising worries among critics and others.
Ms Lam’s government argued the revisions were needed to close legal loopholes, while opponents say that is merely an excuse to pursue China’s agenda of reducing Hong Kong’s legal independence.
