A multitude of views on display at Hong Kong's July 1 march
July 1 protesters, though fewer in number, were pushing issues as diverse as democracy, New Territories development and nuclear power
The turnout was far smaller than normal - perhaps a sign protest fatigue had set in after last year's Occupy sit-ins and last month's decision by lawmakers to reject the government's model for the 2017 chief executive election.
But while the familiar scenes of people swamping Victoria Park hours after the first marchers had left were nowhere to be seen, thousands of people still used July 1 as an opportunity to put across their views on a broad range of issues.
The protesters - many of whom carried yellow umbrellas, a symbol of Occupy - maintained their presence would let Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying realise that the people were keeping an eye on his government and that it had better perform well.
Ann Au, 26, an accountant, who marched with her mother, said: "We expected the government's political reform package to be rejected, but that does not mean we are making progress. Instead, we are only back to square one."
"I don't want the government to mistake our absence for acceptance. That's why I decided to be out here to join the march," her mother added.