Up to 100,000 people are expected to march for universal suffrage in Hong Kong on Sunday to send a message to the territory's leader, who has been pushing an election reform package opponents say is inadequate.
A large turnout could annoy Beijing and embarrass China-backed Chief Executive Donald Tsang, who has stood fast behind his reform proposals and shown little willingness to negotiate or heed demands for a timetable for universal suffrage for the former British colony. "We are not just rejecting this proposal. We are wanting more," said pro-democracy legislator Lee Cheuk-yan. "There's no incentive for us ... to accept this proposal."
Lee Wing-tat, chairman of the Democratic Party, said he expected between 50,000 and 100,000 people to turn out for the rally, which will start in Victoria Park and move to government offices in the heart of the city.
Half a million people attended a march on July 1, 2003, rattling the leadership in Beijing and forcing the Hong Kong government to withdraw plans to enact a controversial anti-subversion law. "I will take part on Sunday because I want to say something to our government. I want them to move fast on democracy," said wedding photographer Ben Li.
Student Anna Yuen said she would not attend the rally, but she agreed Hong Kong was not moving fast enough towards democracy.
"What we can do now is trust the government. What we can see is there's definitely progress and hopefully it works sometime in the future," she said. Since China regained sovereignty over Hong Kong in 1997, the territory has been ruled under a "one country, two systems" formula, which has afforded it some autonomy.
Despite widespread calls for full democracy, Beijing has been unwilling to let the Hong Kong decide for itself when this should come.
Currently, Hong Kong's chief executive is anointed by Beijing and picked by a China-backed committee of 800 electors. Only half of the members of its 60-seat legislature are directly elected.
The government's reform plan would double the size of the Chief Executive selecting committee and add 10 seats to the Legislative Council, five of which would be directly elected.
Tsang, caught between his political masters in Beijing and public opinion in Hong Kong, argues his plan is the best way to advance democracy and rejecting it would strain ties with China. On Friday, some Hong Kong lawmakers and community leaders were invited to the bordering mainland city of Shenzhen to meet Qiao Xiaoyang, a senior member of China's parliament, in a bid to cool the atmosphere before the protest.
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