Thousands protest China’s intervention in Hong Kong

AS IMAGES of election parties pour out of the US, on the other side of the world crowds are forming for a very different reason.

Lawyers and law students take part in a silent march in protest at a ruling by China which effectively bars two pro-independence legislators from taking office in Hong Kong. Picture: Anthony Wallace/AFP Photo

AS IMAGES of snaking poll lines and election parties pour out of the US, on the other side of the world, crowds are forming for a very different reason.

Thousands have taken to the streets of Hong Kong to protest against an anti-independence legal intervention by China’s government.

Hundreds of lawyers and law students, all dressed in black, marched silently through Hong Kong on Tuesday in protest at the ruling which effectively bars two pro-independence legislators, Yau Wai-ching and Baggio Leung, from taking office.

They marched peacefully through the city from the high court to the court of final appeal after the unprecedented decision handed down Monday.

The decision has shaken the semi-autonomous region’s people’s faith in the rule of law, and prompted many to question the validity of their democracy.

Thousands have gathered to silently protest an intervention by China that disbars two progressive politicians from taking office in Hong Kong. Picture: Kin Cheung/AP Photo

Beijing’s ruling pre-empted a decision by the Hong Kong courts over whether two young politicians should be disqualified from parliament after deliberately misreading their oaths to office.

The two men improvised with expletives and draped themselves with flags reading “Hong Kong is not China”.

China’s intervention has been slammed by the city’s pro-democracy camp and legal circles as unwarranted, and a massive blow to Hong Kong’s cherished judicial independence.

US twitter: pics of poll lines
HK twitter: pics of city's lawyers marching bc our rule of law just collapsed and our democracy is fake pic.twitter.com/nj4BPAjMRE

— Wilfred Chan (@wilfredchan) November 8, 2016

Hong Kong was handed back to China by Britain in 1997 under a “one country, two systems” deal which protects its freedoms for 50 years, but there are growing concerns those liberties are disappearing.

The man who led the march, legislator Dennis Kwok, told AFP the move was “very damaging” to the “one country, two systems” rule.

“I don’t accept this as part of the norm in Hong Kong,” he said.

Baggio Leung and Yau Wai-ching during Saturday’s more energetic protests. Picture: Isaac Lawrence/AFP

Earlier protests saw police and civilians clash. Picture: Isaac Lawrence/AFP

Tuesday’s sombre march followed a heated protest over the weekend, which saw pro-independence activists clash with police who unleashed pepper spray on the rowdy crowds.

One students who marched, Winnie Chan, told AFP that Beijing’s judgment has knocked the “core values” of the judicial system.

“The judge and court should not be subjected to pressure,” she said.

The Hong Kong government says the high court will still issue its own ruling on whether Wai-ching and Leung should be barred from taking up their seats.

But city leader Leung Chun-ying has already said he will “fully implement” Beijing’s ruling.

Yau and Leung were among a number of politicians advocating possible independence from Hong Kong who won seats for the first time in elections in September.

The push for independence has grown as young campaigners become increasingly frustrated at their inability to push political reform.