Hong Kong protesters vent their anger on Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying
Some joined the annual July 1 march for the first time, expressing worries about the impact of the bookseller saga on personal freedoms
The July 1 march – the 19th since the 1997 handover – may have seen fewer people turn up, but the demands of protesters were more focused, with protesters expressing anger at Leung Chun-ying and distrust in Beijing over the missing booksellers’ case.
Unlike in previous years when the march often became an occasion for people to champion different causes ranging from animal rights to environmental conservation, the voices on Friday were more unified.
Many said they took to the streets because they feared that the freedoms they had enjoyed would be taken away like those of the booksellers.
“The central government is destroying ‘one country, two systems’,” said Form 5 student Man Chun-kit. “Up to now the doubts are not yet cleared as to whether mainland agencies breached the law and took law enforcement action in Hong Kong. [The booksellers’ case] seems to me one of political oppression.”
Man said he would walk “on behalf of” bookseller Lam Wing-kee, who made a last-minute decision to pull out of the march claiming he faced a “serious threat”.