Explainer | Hong Kong extradition bill explained: how did we get into this mess and what happens next?
- The impasse in the Legislative Council means pro-establishment lawmakers are looking at radical options to make the bill law
- Politicians on both sides have proposed solutions and time is running out if government’s July deadline is to be met
Lawmakers in Hong Kong pushed and shouted at each other as they fought for the control of the committee to scrutinise a controversial extradition bill last Saturday, sending the legislature into unparalleled chaos.
The scuffle in the Legislative Council was triggered by the government’s push for a case-by-case model to transfer fugitives to any jurisdiction that Hong Kong lacks a formal agreement with, including mainland China.
It has also led to a procedural row between rival camps, who called their own meetings and refused to recognise the legitimacy of the opposing faction’s gathering.
A similar but shorter clash on Tuesday led to the pro-establishment’s Abraham Razack, the presiding member, warning the situation had to change and urging both sides to talk to each other.
But what exactly has happened in Legco, and what comes next in the passage of this highly contentious bill?
