Hong Kong Bar Association offers city leader Carrie Lam blueprint for independent inquiry into protests

Plan submitted by Hong Kong Bar Association calls for police, activists and members of the public to be included

Group suggests 15 major protests, including siege of Polytechnic University, be covered

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Philip Dykes, chairman of the Hong Kong Bar Association, attends the Ceremonial Opening of Legal Year 2020 at City Hall in Central. Photo: Sam Tsang

Published: 9:24pm, 14 Jan 2020Updated: 11:01pm, 14 Jan 2020

Hong Kong’s largest barristers group on Tuesday provided the city’s embattled leader with a blueprint for how she might set up an independent inquiry into the unrest of the past seven months, one that would include police, activists and members of the public.

The submission from the Hong Kong Bar Association to Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor, suggested that the inquiry cover 15 major protests and review 10 specific areas of concern, including the use of force by both police and protesters.

Lam has been reluctant to set up a commission of inquiry with the power to summon witnesses, instead repeatedly saying she preferred to appoint a panel of experts to study a broad array of societal issues.

“Nevertheless, the Hong Kong Bar Association remains of the view that the setting of a commission of inquiry would go a long way in healing the rifts in our community by providing closure through an open investigation into events which had affected the lives of many of our citizens,” wrote Bar Association chairman Philip Dykes SC.

Police officers clash with protesters at Central Station on September 8, 2019. A proposed inquiry by the Hong Kong Bar Association would look into violence by both protesters and police. Photo: Getty Images

In the 67-page bilingual submission, the association suggested the inquiry cover 15 major incidents from June to November, including fierce clashes at Chinese University and Polytechnic University.

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