Government stands firm on protest law
Updated at 4.59pm: The Government reaffirmed its support for the Public Order Ordinance on Tuesday afternoon, despite calls from the Bar Association on Monday to amend the law.
Executive Council convenor Leung Chun-ying told local radio after the Executive Council meeting on Tuesday that the Ordinance fully complied with the Basic Law and with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Administration.
''Many Western democracies have similar legislation: rights are divided into individual rights and rights of the community. When you exercise individual rights you cannot damage or trespass on the rights of the community. The Public Order Ordinance strikes a good balance between the two,'' he said.
Mr Leung ruled out the possibility of an amendment, arguing that a wide consultation process had taken place when the Public Order Ordinance was amended in 1997.
''At the time we received almost 38 submissions and most of them were in favour of the tightening of the Public Order Ordinance,'' Mr Leung said.
He said he believed that things have not changed much in the three years since the handover.
