Hong Kong Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung has urged anti-extradition law protesters occupying roads in Admiralty to leave peacefully.
The protests prevented a scheduled Legislative Council meeting from proceeding which was set to debate the controversial extradition bill.
In a video message issued at around 1pm, Cheung said people occupying roads should go back to the pavements as soon as possible so that traffic can resume.
“I urge people who gathered to keep calm, restrained, and disperse peacefully as soon as possible, and do not try to break the law,” he said.
Cheung maintained that the government had been explaining the extradition bill to the public over the past few months.
He said the administration has improved the protection of human rights in the bill: “It is legally binding.”
The statement from the Chief Secretary in full. [Cantonese].
Full coverage: https://t.co/kmLJLFCnSX #NoToChinaExtradition pic.twitter.com/eXHPkL1hug
— Hong Kong Free Press (@HongKongFP) June 12, 2019
“The government stresses that the extradition bill only targets those fugitives who committed serious crimes, and not law-abiding people. We will protect people’s rights and benefits, we will defend Hong Kong’s rule of law, to manifest justice so that Hong Kong will not be a haven for fugitives,” he said.
The legal amendments were tabled in February to allow the city to handle case-by-case extradition requests from jurisdictions with no prior agreements, most notably China and Taiwan.
It would enable the chief executive and local courts to handle extradition requests without legislative oversight. However, democrats, lawyers, journalists, foreign politicians and businesses have raised concerns over the risk of residents being extradited to the mainland, which lacks human rights safeguards.
Pro-Beijing lawmakers
Commercial Radio reported that some pro-Beijing lawmakers had boarded a vehicle which left Central Police Station.
However, no pro-Beijing lawmaker has made any statements on what will happen next.
Post-it notes on buses stuck on Harcourt Road say “Anti-extradition law” “Carrie Lam step down” “Hong Kong, keep fighting,” among other messages. A bus driver looked on as protesters put more notes on the vehicles.
Full coverage: https://t.co/kmLJLFCnSX #NoToChinaExtradition pic.twitter.com/CHLtxKUnwM
— Hong Kong Free Press (@HongKongFP) June 12, 2019
Democratic Party Chair Wu Chi-wai also demanded LegCo President Andrew Leung cancel meetings debating extradition bill, after Wednesday’s meeting was postponed: “Hong Kong is on the brink of crisis – everyone has to do their best to be sincere to resolve our problem,” Wu said.
Accountancy sector lawmaker Kenneth Leung said democrats lack votes to reject the extradition bill and the situation depends on Chief Executive Carrie Lam.
“Carrie Lam should reflect the real sentiments of Hong Kong to the central government,” he said. “Think about this – there will only be more and more young people gathering outside [Legislative Council].”
He added that foreign countries are considering retracting existing extradition agreements with Hong Kong.
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