Hong Kong extradition bill: Thousands march in large-scale protest - CNN

Large numbers of protesters began to gather in the city's Victoria Park just after midday Sunday, donning black and wearing white ribbons on their chests. Many carried bunches of white flowers to honor a man who died after falling from a building on Saturday while holding banners opposing the extradition bill.

"We buy the white flower to hope that he can rest in peace," said 23-year-old Michael, who works in concessions and only gave his first name. Like many others around him, he carried a sign saying "Freedom is Not Free."

On Saturday, Chief Executive Carrie Lam, the top official in Hong Kong, said passage of the bill would be suspended and a second reading due to take place this month canceled. There is no timeline for discussions around the bill to resume, Lam said, and she indicated it likely will not pass this year.

But for the protesters, a suspension is not enough. They fear the bill could be used to extradite residents to mainland China for political or inadvertent business offenses and are pushing for it to be shelved completely.

"We need to come out and tell the government we cannot approve this China extradition bill," said Michael, adding that he believed Lam would continue to push for the bill at a later date.

"We need to stop this because Hong Kong is a very special place. The economy, the culture, it's a special one for the world," he said.

The early crowd were predominantly young people, but there were some families and older people joining the throngs as well. Protesters are expected to march from the city's Victoria Park through the downtown area to Tim Mei Avenue in Admiralty.

Mandy, who turned 18 on Sunday, said she didn't attend the first anti-extradition protest on June 9 when organizers estimate more than 1 million people took to the streets in a peaceful march against the legislation -- about one in seven of the city's population.

"Through this week I think the problem has become more and more serious and I should stand out. So I joined this campaign today," she said.

"I think this protest is more important than my birthday so I come here," she said.

Chik Kim Ping, 65 and her husband Tse, 70, traveled from the New Territories in the north of the city to protest against the extradition bill.

"It's important for us to do this for our children," Chik Kim Ping said. "We are old and don't have much time left. We won't see what's going to happen in 2047 (when Hong Kong fully becomes part of China) but our children will."

Violent clashes

The decision to go ahead with Sunday's protest follows violent clashes between police and protesters Wednesday, after tens of thousands of mostly young people surrounded the city's government headquarters, forcing legislators to postpone a debate on the bill.

Protest organizers are calling for authorities to drop charges against the 11 people arrested during protests Wednesday, amid widespread criticism of police tactics.

Up to 5,000 riot police fired 150 rounds of tear gas, rubber bullets and bean bag rounds during the course of the day. The number of tear gas canisters used was almost double the amount fired during 2014's pro-democracy Umbrella Movement, when the city was brought to a standstill for 79 days.

Videos from Wednesday's protest showed police spraying tear gas directly into protester's faces and beating them with batons.

Speaking after Lam's news conference Saturday, pro-democracy lawmaker Claudia Mo said protests would continue throughout the city until she steps down.

"If she refuses to withdraw, to scrap this controversial bill altogether, it would mean that we wouldn't retreat. She stays on. We stay on," Mo said. "Carrie Lam has lost all credibility among the Hong Kong people. She must step down."

Before she became chief executive in 2017, Lam said she would resign "if mainstream opinion makes me no longer able to continue the job."

Legal concerns

Although Hong Kong is part of China, it has a different legal system -- a concept known as "one country, two systems."

Pro-democracy figures said that the bill, championed by the pro-Beijing Lam government, would lead to the erosion of civil rights in Hong Kong, including freedom of speech and rule of law.

"We are afraid that we will become a mainland city," lawmaker Fernando Cheung said Thursday. "We would no longer have rule of law, our own autonomy."

Throughout the debate Lam has maintained that the bill is necessary to ensure that Hong Kong does not become a sanctuary for fugitives running from justice in mainland China.

Hong Kong's legislative council is due to go on summer recess on July 20, before beginning again in October.

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2019-06-16 08:45:00Z
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Hong Kong protest: Large-scale march under way despite suspension of controversial bill - CNN

Large numbers of protesters began to gather in the city's Victoria Park just after midday Sunday, donning black and wearing white ribbons on their chests. Many carried bunches of white flowers to honor a man who died after falling from a building on Saturday while holding banners opposing the extradition bill.

"We buy the white flower to hope that he can rest in peace," said 23-year-old Michael, who works in concessions and only gave his first name. Like many others around him, he carried a sign saying "Freedom is Not Free."

On Saturday, Chief Executive Carrie Lam, the top official in Hong Kong, said passage of the bill would be suspended and a second reading due to take place this month canceled. There is no timeline for discussions around the bill to resume, Lam said, and she indicated it likely will not pass this year.

But for the protesters, a suspension is not enough. They fear the bill could be used to extradite residents to mainland China for political or inadvertent business offenses and are pushing for it to be shelved completely.

"We need to come out and tell the government we cannot approve this China extradition bill," said Michael, adding that he believed Lam would continue to push for the bill at a later date.

"We need to stop this because Hong Kong is a very special place. The economy, the culture, it's a special one for the world," he said.

The early crowd were predominantly young people, but there were some families and older people joining the throngs as well. Protesters are expected to march from the city's Victoria Park through the downtown area to Tim Mei Avenue in Admiralty.

Mandy, who turned 18 on Sunday, said she didn't attend the first anti-extradition protest on June 9 when organizers estimate more than 1 million people took to the streets in a peaceful march against the legislation -- about one in seven of the city's population.

"Through this week I think the problem has become more and more serious and I should stand out. So I joined this campaign today," she said.

"I think this protest is more important than my birthday so I come here," she said.

Chik Kim Ping, 65 and her husband Tse, 70, traveled from the New Territories in the north of the city to protest against the extradition bill.

"It's important for us to do this for our children," Chik Kim Ping said. "We are old and don't have much time left. We won't see what's going to happen in 2047 (when Hong Kong fully becomes part of China) but our children will."

Violent clashes

The decision to go ahead with Sunday's protest follows violent clashes between police and protesters Wednesday, after tens of thousands of mostly young people surrounded the city's government headquarters, forcing legislators to postpone a debate on the bill.

Protest organizers are calling for authorities to drop charges against the 11 people arrested during protests Wednesday, amid widespread criticism of police tactics.

Up to 5,000 riot police fired 150 rounds of tear gas, rubber bullets and bean bag rounds during the course of the day. The number of tear gas canisters used was almost double the amount fired during 2014's pro-democracy Umbrella Movement, when the city was brought to a standstill for 79 days.

Videos from Wednesday's protest showed police spraying tear gas directly into protester's faces and beating them with batons.

Speaking after Lam's news conference Saturday, pro-democracy lawmaker Claudia Mo said protests would continue throughout the city until she steps down.

"If she refuses to withdraw, to scrap this controversial bill altogether, it would mean that we wouldn't retreat. She stays on. We stay on," Mo said. "Carrie Lam has lost all credibility among the Hong Kong people. She must step down."

Before she became chief executive in 2017, Lam said she would resign "if mainstream opinion makes me no longer able to continue the job."

Legal concerns

Although Hong Kong is part of China, it has a different legal system -- a concept known as "one country, two systems."

Pro-democracy figures said that the bill, championed by the pro-Beijing Lam government, would lead to the erosion of civil rights in Hong Kong, including freedom of speech and rule of law.

"We are afraid that we will become a mainland city," lawmaker Fernando Cheung said Thursday. "We would no longer have rule of law, our own autonomy."

Throughout the debate Lam has maintained that the bill is necessary to ensure that Hong Kong does not become a sanctuary for fugitives running from justice in mainland China.

Hong Kong's legislative council is due to go on summer recess on July 20, before beginning again in October.

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2019-06-16 07:50:00Z
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Hong Kong protesters push ahead with mass rally despite suspension of controversial bill - CNN

Large numbers of protesters began to gather in the city's Victoria Park just after midday Sunday, donning black and wearing white ribbons on their chests. Many carried bunches of white flowers to honor a man who died after falling from a building on Saturday while holding banners opposing the extradition bill.

"We buy the white flower to hope that he can rest in peace," said 23-year-old Michael, who works in concessions and only gave his first name. Like many others around him, he carried a sign saying "Freedom is Not Free."

On Saturday, Chief Executive Carrie Lam, the top official in Hong Kong, said passage of the bill would be suspended and a second reading due to take place this month canceled. There is no timeline for discussions around the bill to resume, Lam said, and she indicated it likely will not pass this year.

But for the protesters, a suspension is not enough. They fear the bill could be used to extradite residents to mainland China for political or inadvertent business offenses and are pushing for it to be shelved completely.

"We need to come out and tell the government we cannot approve this China extradition bill," said Michael, adding that he believed Lam would continue to push for the bill at a later date.

"We need to stop this because Hong Kong is a very special place. The economy, the culture, it's a special one for the world," he said.

The early crowd were predominantly young people, but there were some families and older people joining the throngs as well. Protesters are expected to march from the city's Victoria Park through the downtown area to Tim Mei Avenue in Admiralty.

Mandy, who turned 18 on Sunday, said she didn't attend the first anti-extradition protest on June 9 when organizers estimate more than 1 million people took to the streets in a peaceful march against the legislation -- about one in seven of the city's population.

"Through this week I think the problem has become more and more serious and I should stand out. So I joined this campaign today," she said.

"I think this protest is more important than my birthday so I come here," she said.

Chik Kim Ping, 65 and her husband Tse, 70, traveled from the New Territories in the north of the city to protest against the extradition bill.

"It's important for us to do this for our children," Chik Kim Ping said. "We are old and don't have much time left. We won't see what's going to happen in 2047 (when Hong Kong fully becomes part of China) but our children will."

Violent clashes

The decision to go ahead with Sunday's protest follows violent clashes between police and protesters Wednesday, after tens of thousands of mostly young people surrounded the city's government headquarters, forcing legislators to postpone a debate on the bill.

Protest organizers are calling for authorities to drop charges against the 11 people arrested during protests Wednesday, amid widespread criticism of police tactics.

Up to 5,000 riot police fired 150 rounds of tear gas, rubber bullets and bean bag rounds during the course of the day. The number of tear gas canisters used was almost double the amount fired during 2014's pro-democracy Umbrella Movement, when the city was brought to a standstill for 79 days.

Videos from Wednesday's protest showed police spraying tear gas directly into protester's faces and beating them with batons.

Speaking after Lam's news conference Saturday, pro-democracy lawmaker Claudia Mo said protests would continue throughout the city until she steps down.

"If she refuses to withdraw, to scrap this controversial bill altogether, it would mean that we wouldn't retreat. She stays on. We stay on," Mo said. "Carrie Lam has lost all credibility among the Hong Kong people. She must step down."

Before she became chief executive in 2017, Lam said she would resign "if mainstream opinion makes me no longer able to continue the job."

Legal concerns

Although Hong Kong is part of China, it has a different legal system -- a concept known as "one country, two systems."

Pro-democracy figures said that the bill, championed by the pro-Beijing Lam government, would lead to the erosion of civil rights in Hong Kong, including freedom of speech and rule of law.

"We are afraid that we will become a mainland city," lawmaker Fernando Cheung said Thursday. "We would no longer have rule of law, our own autonomy."

Throughout the debate Lam has maintained that the bill is necessary to ensure that Hong Kong does not become a sanctuary for fugitives running from justice in mainland China.

Hong Kong's legislative council is due to go on summer recess on July 20, before beginning again in October.

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2019-06-16 06:51:00Z
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Hong Kong Protest Live Updates: Demonstrators Urge City’s Leader to Step Down - The New York Times

Here’s what you need to know:

• Protesters bring multiple grievances to the streets.
• Extradition bill at center of protests is suspended, but not withdrawn.
• Man’s death adds to protesters’ anger.
• The murder case used to justify the bill.

Video

Tens of thousands of people demonstrated in Hong Kong against a contentious extradition bill and what they described as heavy-handed police tactics.CreditCreditLam Yik Fei for The New York Times

Protesters bring multiple grievances to the streets.

Thousands of people opposed to a proposed extradition bill marched through Hong Kong on Sunday, a day after the government said it would postpone voting on the legislation.

Far from placating the protesters, the delay energized them and they expanded their list of demands. Among other things, demonstrators called on Carrie Lam, the city’s chief executive, to step down; condemned the police for the use of violent tactics; and called on the government to cease referring to the protests as “riots,” which could have serious legal ramifications for those who have been arrested.

Many people on Sunday carried photos of bloodied demonstrators or images of the police deploying pepper spray and signs that read “Don’t kill us.” Protesters said they also wanted to increase the pressure on Ms. Lam to withdraw the bill entirely.

The extradition legislation that prompted the outrage would allow criminal suspects in Hong Kong, a semiautonomous Chinese territory, to be transferred for trial to mainland China, where the courts are controlled by the Communist Party.

“We don’t trust her at all, actually,” Phoebe Ng, 29, a demonstrator, said of Ms. Lam, whom many protesters have called on to resign.

A similar protest last Sunday drew more than a million people, organizers said, making it one of the largest demonstrations in the history of Hong Kong, a city of about seven million. On Wednesday, lawmakers were forced to postpone a scheduled debate when tens of thousands of protesters gathered outside the legislature. Some protesters who tried unsuccessfully to storm the building were met with tear gas, pepper spray and rubber bullets from riot police officers.

Image

Protesters marched against the extradition bill in Hong Kong on Sunday.CreditLam Yik Fei for The New York Times

Extradition bill at center of protests is suspended, but not withdrawn.

In a remarkable reversal, Hong Kong’s chief executive, Carrie Lam, said on Saturday that she would indefinitely suspend the bill.

[The bill’s suspension is China’s biggest political retreat under President Xi Jinping.]

Ms. Lam, who took over as Hong Kong’s leader in 2017 with the support of Beijing, had vowed to ensure the bill’s approval and tried to get it passed on an unusually short timetable, even as hundreds of thousands demonstrated against it last week.

[Carrie Lam is known for almost never backing down in a fight.]

As pressure mounted, even some pro-Beijing lawmakers said the measure should be delayed. While the suspension is a victory for Hong Kong protesters, Ms. Lam made it clear on Saturday that the bill was being delayed, not withdrawn outright. City leaders hope that delaying the legislation will cool public anger, but leading opposition figures and protesters say that is wishful thinking.

Image

Protesters paid their respects near where a man fell from a building on Saturday.CreditLam Yik Fei for The New York Times

Man’s death adds to protesters’ anger.

Protesters were further galvanized on Sunday by the death of a man who the police say fell from a building after unfurling a protest banner that read, “No extradition to China.”

The man, whom the police identified as a 35-year-old with the surname Leung, had been perched for hours on the roof of an upscale mall near the Hong Kong government complex, where the protests have been concentrated. Shortly after 9 p.m., he climbed onto scaffolding on the side of the building as firefighters tried to rescue him, landing next to an inflatable air cushion that had been set up to catch him. He was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

The man had been wearing a yellow raincoat, on which slogans criticizing the police and Carrie Lam, Hong Kong’s chief executive, were written. Many of the protesters on Sunday carried white flowers as a sign of mourning.

“His sacrifice really does show that the government is still ignoring how the citizens, how the students feel,” said Anson Law, 17, a high school student who has participated in the protests. “The people want to show their will.”

By Sunday morning the site had turned into a makeshift memorial of incense, flowers and handwritten notes. “Death of one man, death of Hong Kong,” said one. A vigil is planned for 9 p.m.

The murder case used to justify the bill.

In pushing the extradition legislation, the Hong Kong government has cited the murder last year of a 20-year-old Hong Kong woman on vacation with her boyfriend in Taiwan, another jurisdiction with which Hong Kong has no extradition agreement.

The boyfriend, a 19-year-old also from Hong Kong, told the police that after an argument with the woman, who was pregnant, he strangled her, stuffed her body in a suitcase and dumped it near a subway station in Taipei, Taiwan’s capital.

Hong Kong officials said the extradition law was necessary for the man to be prosecuted in Taiwan, a self-governing island that is claimed by China. But officials in Taiwan, who have sided with Hong Kong protesters in opposing the extradition legislation, say they would not seek the man’s extradition even if it passed.

Hong Kong’s Leader, Yielding to Protests, Suspends Extradition Bill

June 15, 2019

How Hong Kong’s Leader Made the Biggest Political Retreat by China Under Xi

June 15, 2019

The Murder Case That Lit the Fuse in Hong Kong

June 15, 2019

Carrie Lam: A ‘Good Fighter’ in the Crisis Over the Hong Kong Extradition Bill

June 14, 2019

Reporting was contributed by Michael Ives, Tiffany May, Daniel Victor, Javier Hernandez, Russell Goldman, Gillian Wong and Jennifer Jett.

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https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/16/world/asia/hong-kong-protests.html

2019-06-16 06:45:54Z
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Hong Kong Protest Live Updates: Thousands Take to the Streets - The New York Times

Here’s what you need to know:

• Protesters bring multiple grievances to the streets.
• Extradition bill at center of protests is suspended, but not withdrawn.
• Man’s death adds to protesters’ anger.
• The murder case used to justify the bill.

Image

Protesters paid their respects near where a man fell from a building on Saturday.CreditLam Yik Fei for The New York Times

Protesters bring multiple grievances to the streets.

Thousands of protesters dressed in black took to the streets of Hong Kong again on Sunday, one day after the city’s chief executive said she would shelve a contentious extradition bill and a week after up to a million people rallied to oppose it.

Sunday’s march follows earlier protests, intense clashes with the police, back-room political machinations and a considerable government concession, but many protesters said they would not be fully satisfied until the government withdrew the legislation completely and apologized for the use of heavy-handed police tactics.

While previous demonstrations were focused exclusively on the extradition bill, many people on Sunday carried photos of bloodied demonstrators or images of the police deploying pepper spray.

Protesters also wanted to increase the pressure on Carrie Lam, Hong Kong’s chief executive, to withdraw the bill entirely.

“We don’t trust her at all, actually,” Phoebe Ng, 29, a demonstrator, said of Ms. Lam.

The extradition legislation that prompted the outrage would allow criminal suspects in Hong Kong, a semiautonomous Chinese territory, to be transferred for trial to mainland China, where the courts are controlled by the Communist Party.

A similar protest last Sunday drew more than a million people, organizers said, making it one of the largest demonstrations in the history of Hong Kong, a city of about seven million. On Wednesday, lawmakers were forced to postpone a scheduled debate when tens of thousands of protesters gathered outside the legislature. Some protesters who tried unsuccessfully to storm the building were met with tear gas, pepper spray and rubber bullets from riot police officers.

Extradition bill at center of protests is suspended, but not withdrawn.

In a remarkable reversal, Hong Kong’s chief executive, Carrie Lam, said on Saturday that she would indefinitely suspend the bill.

[The bill’s suspension is China’s biggest political retreat under President Xi Jinping.]

Ms. Lam, who took over as Hong Kong’s leader in 2017 with the support of Beijing, had vowed to ensure the bill’s approval and tried to get it passed on an unusually short timetable, even as hundreds of thousands demonstrated against it last week.

[Carrie Lam is known for almost never backing down in a fight.]

As pressure mounted, even some pro-Beijing lawmakers said the measure should be delayed. While the suspension is a victory for Hong Kong protesters, Ms. Lam made it clear on Saturday that the bill was being delayed, not withdrawn outright. City leaders hope that delaying the legislation will cool public anger, but leading opposition figures and protesters say that is wishful thinking.

Man’s death adds to protesters’ anger.

Protesters were further galvanized on Sunday by the death of a man who the police say fell from a building after unfurling a protest banner that read, “No extradition to China.”

The man, whom the police identified as a 35-year-old with the surname Leung, had been perched for hours on the roof of an upscale mall near the Hong Kong government complex, where the protests have been concentrated. Shortly after 9 p.m., he climbed onto scaffolding on the side of the building as firefighters tried to rescue him, landing next to an inflatable air cushion that had been set up to catch him. He was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

The man had been wearing a yellow raincoat, on which slogans criticizing the police and Carrie Lam, Hong Kong’s chief executive, were written. Many of the protesters on Sunday carried white flowers as a sign of mourning.

“His sacrifice really does show that the government is still ignoring how the citizens, how the students feel,” said Anson Law, 17, a high school student who has participated in the protests. “The people want to show their will.”

By Sunday morning the site had turned into a makeshift memorial of incense, flowers and handwritten notes. “Death of one man, death of Hong Kong,” said one. A vigil is planned for 9 p.m.

The murder case used to justify the bill.

In pushing the extradition legislation, the Hong Kong government has cited the murder last year of a 20-year-old Hong Kong woman on vacation with her boyfriend in Taiwan, another jurisdiction with which Hong Kong has no extradition agreement.

The boyfriend, a 19-year-old also from Hong Kong, told the police that after an argument with the woman, who was pregnant, he strangled her, stuffed her body in a suitcase and dumped it near a subway station in Taipei, Taiwan’s capital.

Hong Kong officials said the extradition law was necessary for the man to be prosecuted in Taiwan, a self-governing island that is claimed by China. But officials in Taiwan, who have sided with Hong Kong protesters in opposing the extradition legislation, say they would not seek the man’s extradition even if it passed.

Hong Kong’s Leader, Yielding to Protests, Suspends Extradition Bill

June 15, 2019

How Hong Kong’s Leader Made the Biggest Political Retreat by China Under Xi

June 15, 2019

The Murder Case That Lit the Fuse in Hong Kong

June 15, 2019

Carrie Lam: A ‘Good Fighter’ in the Crisis Over the Hong Kong Extradition Bill

June 14, 2019

Reporting was contributed by Michael Ives, Tiffany May, Daniel Victor, Javier Hernandez, Russell Goldman, Gillian Wong and Jennifer Jett.

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https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/16/world/asia/hong-kong-protests.html

2019-06-16 06:08:09Z
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Hong Kong Protest Live Updates: Thousands Take to the Streets - The New York Times

Here’s what you need to know:

• Protesters bring multiple grievances to the streets.
• Extradition bill at center of protests is suspended, but not withdrawn.
• Man’s death adds to protesters’ anger.
• The murder case used to justify the bill.

Image

Protesters paid their respects near where a man fell from a building on Saturday.CreditLam Yik Fei for The New York Times

Protesters bring multiple grievances to the streets.

Thousands of protesters dressed in black took to the streets of Hong Kong again on Sunday, one day after the city’s chief executive said she would shelve a contentious extradition bill and a week after up to a million people rallied to oppose it.

Sunday’s march follows earlier protests, intense clashes with the police, back-room political machinations and a considerable government concession, but many protesters said they would not be fully satisfied until the government withdrew the legislation completely and apologized for the use of heavy-handed police tactics.

While previous demonstrations were focused exclusively on the extradition bill, many people on Sunday carried photos of bloodied demonstrators or images of the police deploying pepper spray.

Protesters also wanted to increase the pressure on Carrie Lam, Hong Kong’s chief executive, to withdraw the bill entirely.

“We don’t trust her at all, actually,” Phoebe Ng, 29, a demonstrator, said of Ms. Lam.

The extradition legislation that prompted the outrage would allow criminal suspects in Hong Kong, a semiautonomous Chinese territory, to be transferred for trial to mainland China, where the courts are controlled by the Communist Party.

A similar protest last Sunday drew more than a million people, organizers said, making it one of the largest demonstrations in the history of Hong Kong, a city of about seven million. On Wednesday, lawmakers were forced to postpone a scheduled debate when tens of thousands of protesters gathered outside the legislature. Some protesters who tried unsuccessfully to storm the building were met with tear gas, pepper spray and rubber bullets from riot police officers.

Extradition bill at center of protests is suspended, but not withdrawn.

In a remarkable reversal, Hong Kong’s chief executive, Carrie Lam, said on Saturday that she would indefinitely suspend the bill.

[The bill’s suspension is China’s biggest political retreat under President Xi Jinping.]

Ms. Lam, who took over as Hong Kong’s leader in 2017 with the support of Beijing, had vowed to ensure the bill’s approval and tried to get it passed on an unusually short timetable, even as hundreds of thousands demonstrated against it last week.

[Carrie Lam is known for almost never backing down in a fight.]

As pressure mounted, even some pro-Beijing lawmakers said the measure should be delayed. While the suspension is a victory for Hong Kong protesters, Ms. Lam made it clear on Saturday that the bill was being delayed, not withdrawn outright. City leaders hope that delaying the legislation will cool public anger, but leading opposition figures and protesters say that is wishful thinking.

Man’s death adds to protesters’ anger.

Protesters were further galvanized on Sunday by the death of a man who the police say fell from a building after unfurling a protest banner that read, “No extradition to China.”

The man, whom the police identified as a 35-year-old with the surname Leung, had been perched for hours on the roof of an upscale mall near the Hong Kong government complex, where the protests have been concentrated. Shortly after 9 p.m., he climbed onto scaffolding on the side of the building as firefighters tried to rescue him, landing next to an inflatable air cushion that had been set up to catch him. He was pronounced dead at a nearby hospital.

The man had been wearing a yellow raincoat, on which slogans criticizing the police and Carrie Lam, Hong Kong’s chief executive, were written. Many of the protesters on Sunday carried white flowers as a sign of mourning.

“His sacrifice really does show that the government is still ignoring how the citizens, how the students feel,” said Anson Law, 17, a high school student who has participated in the protests. “The people want to show their will.”

By Sunday morning the site had turned into a makeshift memorial of incense, flowers and handwritten notes. “Death of one man, death of Hong Kong,” said one. A vigil is planned for 9 p.m.

The murder case used to justify the bill.

In pushing the extradition legislation, the Hong Kong government has cited the murder last year of a 20-year-old Hong Kong woman on vacation with her boyfriend in Taiwan, another jurisdiction with which Hong Kong has no extradition agreement.

The boyfriend, a 19-year-old also from Hong Kong, told the police that after an argument with the woman, who was pregnant, he strangled her, stuffed her body in a suitcase and dumped it near a subway station in Taipei, Taiwan’s capital.

Hong Kong officials said the extradition law was necessary for the man to be prosecuted in Taiwan, a self-governing island that is claimed by China. But officials in Taiwan, who have sided with Hong Kong protesters in opposing the extradition legislation, say they would not seek the man’s extradition even if it passed.

Hong Kong’s Leader, Yielding to Protests, Suspends Extradition Bill

June 15, 2019

How Hong Kong’s Leader Made the Biggest Political Retreat by China Under Xi

June 15, 2019

The Murder Case That Lit the Fuse in Hong Kong

June 15, 2019

Carrie Lam: A ‘Good Fighter’ in the Crisis Over the Hong Kong Extradition Bill

June 14, 2019

Reporting was contributed by Michael Ives, Tiffany May, Daniel Victor, Javier Hernandez, Russell Goldman, Gillian Wong and Jennifer Jett.

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https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/16/world/asia/hong-kong-protests.html

2019-06-16 05:50:46Z
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Is Iran to blame for suspected attacks on Gulf tankers? - Aljazeera.com

Even in ordinary times, an attack on commercial tankers near the Strait of Hormuz - a vital sea lane for the world's oil supplies, located between Iran and Oman - would be a matter of concern for global trade. That such incidents were reported on Thursday, at a time of soaring US-Iran tensions, makes them an even greater threat. Not just for global commerce, but also for peace and security in the region and the world.  

Thursday's incidents, which caused damage to the Norwegian-owned Front Altair and Japanese-owned Kokuka Courageous, came just a month after the United Arab Emirates reported "sabotage attacks" against four other commercial ships off the coast of its Fujairah emirate. 

The United States, which has been building up its military presence in the region, has blamed Iran for both events.

Hours after the latest incidents were reported, the US military released a grainy video that it said showed members of Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) trying to remove an unexploded mine from the Kokuka Courageous.

Tehran has denied the US accusations, saying the latest claims are both "ridiculous" and "dangerous".

Mohammad Javad Zarif, Iran's foreign minister, also called the timing of the reported attacks "suspicious", noting a Japanese-owned ship was damaged while Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was on a visit to Tehran, seeking to defuse US-Iran frictions.  

'Ridiculous, dangerous': Iran denies US claims over Gulf tankers

As calls grew for an international inquiry, the owner of the Kokuka Courageous cast doubt on the US narrative, saying the vessel's crew saw a "flying object" before it was rocked by a second blast. 

"I do not think there was a time bomb or an object attached to the side of the ship," Yutaka Katada said on Friday. 

Analysts reacted to the US allegations with skepticism. And even those who found the claims credible said Washington may have forced Iran's hand with its "maximum pressure" campaign of punishing financial sanctions. 

Threat to close Strait of Hormuz

"Tehran has the capability to commit such attacks and has threatened to interfere with shipping in the Gulf while it is also in a state of desperation due to the tight sanctions and international isolation," said Max Abrahms, professor of political science at Northeastern University in the US. 

That Iranian threat followed a US bid to cut Iran's oil production to zero. The US move, announced in May, came after Washington re-imposed sanctions on Iran, a year after exiting an international accord that lifted global sanctions in exchange for curbs on Tehran's nuclear programme. 

US President Donald Trump said the renewed financial pressure was aimed at forcing Iran to negotiate a new deal that would also addresses its ballistic missiles project. 

Iran, however, has remained defiant. 

Despite US sanctions triggering an economic crisis in the country, Iranian leaders said they would not be bullied into talks with the US. Instead they threatened counter-measures, including the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which more than a third of oil traded by sea passes.  

"According to international law, the Strait of Hormuz is a marine passageway and if we are barred from using it, we will shut it down," General Alireza Tangsiri, commander-in-chief of the IRGC's navy, said in April.  

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Iran's President Hassan Rouhani said the same last December. "If one day they want to prevent the export of Iran's oil, then no oil will be exported from the Persian Gulf," he had warned. 

The Islamic Republic has also warned it will withdraw from the nuclear accord if other parties to the agreement - Germany, France, United Kingdom, Russia and China - fail to shield Tehran from the US penalties.

Barbara Slavin, director of the Future of Iran Initiative at the Atlantic Council, said if Iran was responsible for Thursday's attacks, it was carrying out its repeated threats that other countries in the region would also "face obstacles" in exporting oil. 

"The aim would be to show the international community that its acquiescence to US secondary sanctions is not cost-free and to show the Trump administration that far from curbing Iran's "malign" policies, US actions are incentivising them."

'Skepticism warranted'

But with Iran still appealing to the remaining signatories to deliver on its promised economic benefits, Abrahms said it was not in Tehran's interests to disrupt trade in the Gulf. 

"The question arises as to why Tehran would commit such an attack because it only harms Iran on the world stage and helps its enemies, while skepticism is also warranted due to the unreliability of [US'] intelligence," he said referring to the faulty intelligence Washington used to justify its invasion of Iraq in 2003. 

And despite Iran's defiance to the US moves, attacks on international oil shipments in the Gulf represented a qualitatively different type of activity, others noted. 

"It could not be Iran's job or even that of certain elements within the Iranian state," said Hamidreza Azizi, professor of international relations at Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran. 

"Consider the coincidence of these attacks with Abe's landmark trip to Tehran, the presence of Russian crew on Norwegian-owned Front Altair, the proximity of the incident site to Iran's territorial waters, and finally the Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's emphasis that "resistance" does not mean military action, and you will realise Tehran is not the culprit," he said. 

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"It sounds like a provocative false-flag operation staged by Iran's regional nemeses so they could play the victim and portray Tehran as the chief devil in the room even as they are trying to torpedo any chance of negotiations between Tehran and Washington and dragging Iran into a conflict they crave for but cannot win alone," Azizi added. 

'All-out war'

Regardless of who was behind Thursday's incidents, insecurity in the Gulf was likely to persist "until the US and its allies change their aggressive behaviour towards Iran and let off steam", said an IRGC-affiliated intelligence analyst. 

Speaking to Al Jazeera on the condition of anonymity, the analyst said some in Tehran believed a large-scale confrontation in the Gulf was unlikely because such a conflict would also have severe consequences for the US and its regional allies. 

"If these escalations lead to military confrontation between Iran and the US by any chance, Tehran's response will not be limited to the US, but will definitely involve its allies in the neighborhood; they will see the end of their rule," the analyst explained.

"They might be hoping for a limited conflict, but that's not how things will turn out in the case of Iran. It will be an all-out war but let's not forget that it was the US that started this spiral."

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https://www.aljazeera.com/news/middleeast/2019/06/iran-blame-suspected-attacks-gulf-tankers-190615165831404.html

2019-06-15 22:00:00Z
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