At main rally in Admiralty, protesters split over whether Occupy Central is in charge

A split has emerged in the main Occupy Central rally in Admiralty, with some outspoken protesters seeing it as a self-initiated campaign in which no one can order them around or has the ultimate say.

The civil disobedience the pro-democracy campaign has embraced was taken to a new level yesterday when Occupy marshals met severe criticism from part of the crowd for trying to remove barricades at Tim Mei Avenue next to government headquarters.

The dispute followed an argument in Wan Chai a day earlier in which some protesters insisted on a more confrontational show of opposition at the National Day flag-raising ceremony, rejecting a peaceful protest staged by student activist group Scholarism.

Occupy co-founder Benny Tai Yiu-ting conceded leadership was absent in the circumstances.

In Admiralty, Occupy marshal Chan To-wai said they were acting on complaints that protesters found it difficult to enter the blockaded Tim Mei Avenue.

Protesters see the barricades as protection against police attempts to clear the scene.

"Since police showed no signs of returning last night, we think the barriers are standing in the way of people and logistics flow," Chan said. "We do not intend to remove all the barricades, only this part of the avenue so protesters can go in and out smoothly."