Mass Protests Held in Hong Kong over Rights

Dressed in black to represent the demise of human rights, waving banners and holding umbrellas to shield them from the summer sun, more than 250,000 people came out onto Hong Kong's streets on Tuesday to protest against an anti-subversion law planned for the territory.

Official observers said it was the biggest crowd to demonstrate here since the pro-democracy march on June 4 1989 when one million people participated. Organisers said they believed the attendance was closer to 400,000, despite the 32 degree Celsius temperature.

The high turnout can be interpreted as a vote of no confidence in the administration of Tung Chee-hwa, Hong Kong's unpopular leader, who since he assumed control in 1997 has overseen a financial downturn, record unemployment, the Sars epidemic and growing dissatisfaction with his government's accountability to the general population.

Mainland authorities will be concerned about the demonstration's popularity, particularly since the march was timed to coincide with the sixth anniversary of Hong Kong's handover by Britain to China. Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao, who was visiting to mark the occasion, was ushered out of the territory well before the march commenced in the early afternoon.

By 7pm (Hong Kong time), tens of thousands of protesters were still winding their way from Causeway Bay to government offices in Central. They chanted "No rushed laws" and "We're against Article 23" in reference to the legislation, which gives the government powers to ban organisations deemed unfriendly to China or Hong Kong; allows police sweeping search powers without a court warrant; and permits people to be convicted for life if found guilty of treason or subversion.

Opponents of the legislation, such as Christine Loh, a former legislator and the head of the Civic Exchange, a private think tank, expected a high proportion of the participants to be 'virgin marchers'. From the composition of the crowd, this appeared to be true.

Lawyer Vincent Chan, aged 46, said he was marching for the first time.

"I feel compelled to be here. The government is trying to push this law through without proper consultation and I object to the content," he said.

One well-dressed, middle-aged protestor, who identified himself only as Y.K, said he had timed a business trip with the march and had flown in from Los Angeles on Tuesday.

"I marched on June 4 1989 for the right reason and this is another occasion when it is right to do so," he said.

The high number of protestors clogged the streets, bringing movement to a standstill and providing plenty of opportunity for some in the crowd to take short breaks in the many noodle shops lining the streets.

"I am here because Hong Kong people need to be together to show Beijing that we want to keep our rights and work toward democracy," Carol Ho, a local university student said.

The good-natured crowd was monitored by a light police presence. About 1,000 uniformed officers were on the streets with an undisclosed number of plain-clothes officers in the crowd.

"We are not here to tell people what to do. We are here as a safety measure," a police sergeant said.