Occupy protest organisers split over plan to hand themselves in to police

The three co-founders of Occupy Central plan to turn themselves in to police next week but vowed to continue supporting protesters under a "two-stage" surrender plan.

But the decision, made after a meeting between the trio and their volunteers on Saturday, puts them at odds with student leaders - a major force behind the sit-ins - who said they would continue until they were arrested.

Under the tentative plan, the trio - Benny Tai Yiu-ting, the Reverend Chu Yiu-ming and Dr Chan Kin-man - and a small number of core supporters will turn themselves in to police on December 5, while another group of the civil disobedience movement's volunteers may follow suit after the pro-democracy sit-in ends.

"The two-stage plan aims at cooling down tensions on both sides," said a source close to the camp. "While we want to tell society that we do not intend to destroy the rule of law, we hope occupiers can understand that we are not deserting them."

They would continue to provide medical and legal assistance to protesters.

But Lester Shum, deputy secretary general of the Federation of Students, said: "We students think that it's not the right moment to turn ourselves in yet as we are inclined to finish the final step of civil disobedience by being arrested."

While both Labour Party stalwart Lee Cheuk-yan and Civil Party leader Alan Leong Kah-kit ruled out handing themselves in before the movement ended, the Democratic Party will meet Occupy Central co-founders tomorrow to decide their stance.