Mass Protest against Hong Kong Law by Hamish McDonald, Beijing The Age 1:45pm 2nd Jul, 2003   July 2 2003    Tens of thousands marched through the centre of Hong Kong yesterday in the biggest display of defiance towards Beijing since the former British colony was handed back to indirect Chinese rule six years ago.    Most were expressing their opposition to a sweeping new anti-subversion law due to be enacted a week from now by the territory's partly elected Legislative Council. The council is dominated by business and labour nominees known for their deference to the Chinese Communist Government.    The Hong Kong protest against a feared loss of freedom came as the Communist Party also celebrated the anniversary in Beijing with a closed-door seminar.    New party leader Hu Jintao gave a keynote speech, reported to be an exhortation to follow the "Three Represents" ideology laid down by his predecessor Jiang Zemin..    After gathering in Victoria Park, the huge procession wound towards the central legislature building.    Hong Kong has not seen such a protest since hundreds of thousands marched in outrage over the 1989 massacre of democracy activists occupying Beijing's Tiananmen Square.    Many wore T-shirts and carried signs with slogans calling for the resignation of Tung Chee-hwa, a shipping tycoon who has run the territory as the Beijing-appointed "chief executive" or governor since the 1997 handover. He is now deeply unpopular and widely regarded as incompetent and too deferential to Beijing.    "The Government is openly ignoring the will and opinion of the people of Hong Kong, who are taxpayers and voters," said S. K. Leung, an accountant who was heading for the protest with a group of friends.    "If I remain on the side of the silent group, I don't know what will follow," he said.    A Hong Kong University poll has found 53 per cent of the territory's people are opposed to the new security law and only 16 per cent support it.    The security law, known as Article 23, outlaws a wide range of activities regarded as subversive of Communist rule or promoting separatism. It allows local security authorities to ban organisations that are also proscribed on the mainland.    The meditation movement Falun Gong and Chinese democracy advocates see Hong Kong's days as a safe platform for expression coming to an end.    The protest has been embarrassing for Beijing, which had just dispatched Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao for what was intended as a morale-boosting visit in which a new free-trade pact with the mainland was announced.    - with agencies Visit the related web page
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