As Hong Kong woke up after a night of unprecedented drama, the city was divided on whether protesters who stormed and vandalised the city’s legislature had gone too far in their quest to make their voices heard. “Totally unacceptable for a civilised society like Hong Kong.”Some Hong Kong residents questioned why police had apparently stood aside as protesters moved on the legislature, allowing them to break through the windows and inflict extensive damage inside the building. Although returned to Chinese rule in 1997, Hong Kong is still administered separately under an arrangement known as “one country, two systems”. Chan was the chief secretary under the city’s last British governor, Chris Patten, and was the public face of the treaty that ceded Hong Kong back to Chinese rule. The Law Society of Hong Kong deplored the “serious criminal damage” inflicted on Tuesday night, but called on the government and public to “respect others, work together, restore trust and confidence and move forward”.

Source: The Guardian July 02, 2019 16:52 UTC