Mr Tung's long-awaited statement yesterday included his first acknowledgment of the strong dissatisfaction over his governance.

'I fully understand the community's sentiments and demands and it is necessary for me and my colleagues to do better,' Mr Tung said.

But last night it was still unclear whether the bill could be guaranteed safe passage through the legislature on Wednesday.

Its fate hinges on the voting intentions of the Liberal Party - which yesterday backed away from its earlier pledge to seek the bill's deferral until the end of the year - and a number of non-affiliated legislators who had expressed concerns before yesterday's announcement.

The amendments were dismissed by the pro-democracy camp and legal experts, who demanded the shelving of the bill.

Critics oppose the bill to implement Article 23 of the Basic Law - which seeks to ban acts of treason, subversion, sedition and theft of state secrets - on the grounds that it would curb rights and civil liberties.

They had been especially concerned with the provision granting the government the power to ban local groups whose mainland counterparts are outlawed for threatening national security; the proposed granting of police powers to enter and search properties without court warrants; and the lack of a public-interest defence against the unlawful disclosure of official secrets.

Yesterday's amendments involved the deletion of the first two provisions and the insertion of a public-interest defence mechanism.

Speaking with his entire cabinet behind him, Mr Tung announced that the government would bow to public concerns after seeing the turnout at the July 1 march, the largest since protests against the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown.

'In order to further allay the concerns of the public, we have now decided to introduce [the] amendments,' he said.

He said the changes would be final and clauses would not be re-introduced to the bill at a later stage.

But the chief executive refused to defer the bill for further consultation, saying it was 'for the good of Hong Kong'.

'Our community has been highly politicised over this issue. Our community will be further divided if we remain undecided on this issue,' he said, stressing that he was not acting on mainland orders.

Both Gao Siren, head of the Beijing Liaison Office, and the National People's Congress' Legislative Affairs Commission last night threw their weight behind Mr Tung. Xinhua quoted a commission spokesman as saying the government had listened to the views of the public in the legislation process. It supported the government's decision to legislate 'as scheduled'.

Democratic Party chairman Yeung Sum, who will seek the bill's deferral on Wednesday, said the changes would not satisfy public concerns. 'We regret Tung's refusal to defer the bill as there is no pressing need to enact the law. It has shown his total lack of sensitivity and disregard of public demands,' Mr Yeung said.

The Civil Human Rights Front, which organised the July 1 march, has vowed to mobilise up to 50,000 people to protest in front of the Legislative Council on Wednesday to demand a halt to the bill.

Edward Chan King-sang, chairman of the Bar Association, said it would be 'foolish' for the government to press ahead with the legislative process. 'The bill is still far from perfect,' he said.

But Executive Councillor Tsang Yok-sing, chairman of the Democratic Alliance for Betterment of Hong Kong, said the amendments would address public concerns. 'Deferring the legislation cannot solve any problems,' he said.

Proposal to outlaw groups linked to banned mainland organisation is scrapped

Public interest is introduced as a defence for disclosing official secrets

Search without warrant powers for police are removed