Organisers are expecting about 50,000 protesters to turn out for the July 1 march, down from 70,000 last year, underscoring fears that a deep split within the city’s opposition camp will deter potential participants.

The march has become an annual opportunity for campaigners to show the strength of opposition to Beijing and the local authorities.

But last week’s passage of a package of political reforms that promise an incremental boost to democracy — but not one person, one vote — has divided the opposition camp.

Some politicians warned that this year’s protest could be chaotic — with campaigners directing their anger not only at the government, but the formerly uncompromising Democratic Party, which recently changed course and voted in favour of the Beijing-backed reform package.

Raymond Wong, of the radical League of Social Democrats, said they would not encourage supporters to clash with the Democratic Party, but added “we can’t guarantee anything”.

“I expect the July 1 march will be very chaotic. The Communist Party will be very happy.”

Previously, the opposition was united in their goal to fight for universal suffrage for the city of seven million people in 2012 — and nothing less.

Last week, the Democratic Party’s lawmakers were mobbed by a large crowd of activists, who accused them of betraying Hong Kong people by kowtowing to Beijing.

To minimise disruption to Thursday’s rally, organisers said they will place members of the party at the end of the march.

Albert Ho, chairman of the Democratic Party, said he was prepared for a bad reception.

“There may be people who point fingers at us,” he said.

“But I don’t think it will turn into personal conflicts or physical confrontation… I am very confident it will be a peaceful and orderly demonstration.”

A record 500,000 people took part in the 2003 march, galvanised by an economic downturn and hostility towards the unpopular then chief executive, Tung Chee-hwa, and his proposed national security bill.

The unexpected show of people power saw the security legislation shelved and was a key factor in Tung’s resignation the following year. — AFP

The legislators approved the proposed changes by a vote of 46-12, concluding a three-day marathon debate. On Thursday, they cleared a measure that expands Hong Kong’s leader selection committee from 800 to 1,200 people for the 2012 election cycle.

Hong Kong’s Beijing-appointed government has billed the proposals as a form of democratization in the semiautonomous territory, but critics say they only beef up an electoral system skewed in favor of the Chinese government.

“This is the darkest day in the history of Hong Kong’s development of democracy,” opposition legislator Albert Chan shouted in the legislative chamber after the changes were passed.

Hong Kong leader Donald Tsang was able to secure passage of both bills by winning over the former British colony’s leading opposition, the Democratic Party. Tsang agreed to a proposal by the Democrats that the 10 new legislative seats be put to a popular vote. The current 60-member Legislative Council is half-elected, half chosen by professional and business sectors, many of whom are loyal to Beijing.

Hard-line pro-democracy lawmakers made a last-minute appeal to their colleagues earlier Friday, warning the limited changes further entrench a pro-Beijing and pro-business bias, while delaying the prospect of free elections.

“The result of this so-called ‘progress’ in the constitutional system may very well be the end of our journey to democracy instead of the advancement we were hoping for,” said legislator Andrew Cheng, who quit the Democratic Party in protest Wednesday.

“There is no reason our political system should protect the powerful, the rich, people with connections, people with influence and people with resources,” lawmaker Audrey Eu said.

The Democrats, who have been besieged with accusations of betrayal during the debate, defended their compromise, saying their supporters are sick of political stalemate. Hong Kong’s pro-democracy camp blocked a similar package of electoral changes in 2005.

“There is a large group of middle-class citizens who feel a strong powerlessness about the inability of the constitutional system to progress,” Democrat Lee Wing-tat said. — AP

The package has been billed by the government as reform because it expands the committee that selects Hong Kong’s chief executive and adds elected representatives to the 60-member legislature, which is half chosen by professional and business sectors loyal to Beijing.

The lawmakers approved expanding Hong Kong’s 800-member leader selection committee to 1,200 people with a vote of 46-13. Another bill that adds 10 seats to the Legislative Council was pending, but it’s also expected to receive the 40 votes required for passage.

Critics say the plan is undemocratic because it reinforces a political system skewed in favor of Beijing without changing its fundamental structure.

Beijing, however, was able to win over moderates in the pro-democracy camp by making a last-minute concession. Chinese officials agreed to a Democratic Party suggestion to put all 10 new legislative seats to a popular vote.

Meanwhile, in a political bonus to Beijing, the proposals have divided its opposition. Much of the debate has been characterized by bickering among pro-democracy legislators, with members of hard-line pro-democracy parties accusing the Democratic Party of abandoning the fight for full democracy.

“If the Democratic Party votes for the reform package without the promise of genuine democracy, they have betrayed their promise and their integrity,” League of Social Democrats legislator Raymond Wong said Thursday before the vote. “They are accepting the lies of the people in power. They are no longer part of the pro-democracy camp.”

Alan Leong, a lawmaker for the pro-democacy Civic Party, said that public support has been building for changes to make Hong Kong’s government more accountable to the people’s will. He added, “If we pass this so-called ‘improved’ bill, this momentum will disappear.”

Democrat Andrew Cheng said he opposed the compromise and announced he will quit the party on Wednesday. Chairman Albert Ho was heckled by calls of “shameful” and splashed with water as he left the legislature late Wednesday. On Thursday, another Democrat, James To, called the bill “unacceptable” but eventually voted yes.

Democrats who back the bill say that while they will continue the fight for free elections, it is time for some concrete — if flawed — progress, otherwise their supporters will lose patience.

“People accuse us of compromising. I want to ask all of my friends in the pro-democracy camp, who hasn’t thought about this problem before they ran for election and entered this legislature?” legislator Lee Wing-tat said. “Have any of us compromised? We have all compromised.” — AP

If successful, the legislative reforms would be the first to pass in the semiautonomous former British colony since its change of sovereignty in 1997. Hong Kong’s legislature voted down a similar package in 2005.

The opposition lawmakers denounced the plan to expand the 800-member committee that selects the territory’s leader to 1,200 people for the 2012 election cycle and add 10 seats to the 60-member legislature, which is half-elected and half chosen by interest groups. Many of the interest groups represent business interests that are loyal to Beijing.

Legislator Cyd Ho said the reform plan doesn’t change the structure of a fundamentally undemocratic political system.

“It still puts the interests of society’s elite over the public interest. It’s a regressive package,” Ho said.

Opponents of the bill tried to delay the vote with parliamentary tactics, prolonging what is already expected to be a marathon two-day session.

Pro-democracy legislator Albert Chan accused the Hong Kong government of trying to ram the bill through the legislature.

“You are not allowing rational debate. You are using rush tactics and the violence of a parliamentary majority to distort public opinion,” he said in the Legislative Council.

The bill is expected to pass because Hong Kong leader Donald Tsang struck a deal with the territory’s leading opposition party, the Democratic Party, giving him the required 40 votes for passage. At their suggestion, Tsang agreed on Monday to put all 10 new legislative seats to a popular vote.

The changes have split Hong Kong’s pro-democracy camp in a tactical victory for Beijing. Hard-line factions have accused the Democrats of losing sight of their mission of genuinely free elections. The Democrats argue that the revised proposals are a good transition and that they will continue to campaign for full democracy.

One Democratic Party lawmaker announced during Wednesday’s debate that he will quit the party.

“I value my relationships with my Democratic Party colleagues, but I also have to be loyal to my beliefs and my campaign promises,” Andrew Cheng said.

Democratic Party Chairman Albert Ho denied that the party had been co-opted by Beijing. Once viewed as troublemakers by the Communist government, the Democrats now find themselves in the unusual position of working with it. One of Beijing’s top representatives in Hong Kong held unprecedented talks with Ho and two other Democratic Party legislators about a month ago.

“If we continue to be stuck in a stalemate amid widening divisions in society, it will only make people from the mainstream who support democracy powerless and fed up,” Ho said. — AP

Bao Pu said he had planned to release the purported memoir of former Premier Li Peng in the former British colony on Tuesday, but stopped the print run of 20,000 copies Friday.

“Relevant institutions have produced new information about the copyright holder. We have no choice but to stop right now,” he said, declining to elaborate.

The Chinese government has not commented on the authenticity of the book since excerpts were provided to the media on June 4, the 21st anniversary of the crackdown.

If authenticated, the manuscript would be one of the few accounts of high-level discussions on how to handle the demonstrations. In the purported memoir, Li claims armed rioters opened fire first at Chinese troops, forcing them to return fire in self-defense. He gives a precise death toll for the military action — 313 dead, including 42 students and 23 soldiers.

Li also quotes late Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping as advocating martial law, saying the government would try to minimize casualties but “we have to prepare for some bloodshed.”

The Tiananmen crackdown remains a taboo subject in mainland China. The government has never provided a credible account nor allowed an independent investigation of the events and fatalities.

Hong Kong, however, is promised freedom of speech as part of its special semiautonomous political status.

“I really regret that the public will not be able to get this book,” Bao said. “This is a major loss to people who study history.”

Bao is the son of Bao Tong, a top aide to late Chinese Communist Party General-Secretary Zhao Ziyang, who was purged for opposing military action in Tiananmen and spent most of the rest of his life under house arrest. The younger Bao also published Zhao’s posthumous memoir last year.

Calls to China’s Foreign Ministry on Sunday seeking comment went unanswered. — AP

In Chinese culture, relatives are expected to visit the cemetery at least once a year to pay their respects. But now, mourners can simply visit memorial.gov.hk and set up a page for free.

Up to 100,000 users can upload photos and videos of their loved ones, write descriptions and offer condolences.

Family and friends can make traditional offerings, as is the Chinese custom, by using “emoticon” symbols depicting fruit, flowers and candles.

There are even emoticons for roast pigs, chickens and paper money — all popular graveside offerings in Chinese tradition.

Mourners can also upload any special images that their dead relative loved, such as the racing pages from a newspaper or a tasty bowl of their favourite noodles.

But nobody has yet worked out how to offer incense, an essential offering, as downloadable smoke and smells have yet to be invented.

The online graveyard’s welcome page features fluffy white clouds in a blue sky, and a quick burst of sunlight, as white dandelion seeds float peacefully by.

“Leave a message for your beloved ones with memories,” the site says, explaining that it is aimed at “facilitating the public to pay tribute and show condolence to their beloved ones at any time, and from anywhere”.

Only Hong Kongers can be registered and must be confirmed dead, and have been buried or cremated in the city.

“Youngsters may like the idea,” Ng Yiu-tong, chairman of the city’s funeral association, told the South China Morning Post. “But the older generation still prefers to visit the graves in person.”

The site cost the government one million Hong Kong dollars (130,000 US dollars) to set up and will cost 800,000 dollars a year to run.

Space for the dead is a big issue in overcrowded Hong Kong where permanent cemetery plots are rare and costly.

Cremation is unpopular in Chinese culture, and many families choose to bury their dead in government-run cemeteries where they lease a plot for 10 years, after which the corpse is either cremated or re-buried in a smaller plot. — AFP

Tens of thousands of people held aloft white candles at a large park in the former British colony of Hong Kong, which enjoys freedom of speech as part of its special semiautonomous status. Democracy activists laid a wreath at a makeshift monument dedicated to the Tiananmen victims, bowing three times in line with traditional Chinese mourning customs.

“Hong Kong people have the right to voice their opinion and this is much better than the mainland, where people are not allowed to say anything. I hope Beijing will at least see that Hong Kong people want to right the wrong,” said 62-year-old businessman Lee Sum, one of the estimated 113,000 that police say attended.

“I came here today in the hope that the next generation will be aware of this issue. We will do anything to help, even though we are not optimistic that Beijing will take heed,” said 27-year-old Fay Liu, who works for a nongovernmental organization.

In Tokyo, former student leader Wu’er Kaixi stormed into the grounds of the Chinese Embassy, but was quickly arrested by Japanese police, according to local news reports. The now-Taiwanese citizen said in a prerecorded video that he wanted to return home so he could lobby Chinese leaders to openly discuss the 1989 military action.

“Today, I take this action to go back to China to continue to press the Chinese government for dialogue — even if this dialogue has to take place in a courtroom,” he said.

Wu’er, who rose to fame during the Tiananmen protests by haranguing then-Chinese Premier Li Peng during a televised meeting, was No. 2 on China’s list of 21 wanted student leaders.

The exile who topped the list remembered the dead by hosting an online discussion on his Twitter account.

“In the past 21 years, we have never and will never forget them. We are just the lucky survivors. They are the true heroes,” Wang Dan, who now lives in Los Angeles, said in a Tweet.

In Washington, the Obama administration urged China to provide full disclosure of events surrounding Tiananmen and to protect the rights of citizens expressing dissent.

“We ask the Chinese government to provide the fullest possible public accounting of those killed, detained or missing, and to cease harassment of those who participated in the demonstrations and the families of the victims,” said State Department spokesman Philip J. Crowley.

In Taiwan, which split with China amid civil war in 1949, President Ma Ying-jeou issued a statement urging Beijing to “take any necessary action to heal the trauma of the victims and their relatives and correct any unfairness.”

In China, the government enforced its long-standing censorship of Tiananmen. On Friday in Beijing, the square was open but tightly guarded as tourists attended the early morning flag-raising ceremony and others flew kites above the massive space.

The Web service Foursquare — which lets users alert their friends to their locations through their mobile phones — was blocked after many users had “checked in” from Tiananmen Square to mark the anniversary.

Late Thursday, police officers blocked reporters from watching activist Ding Zilin mourn her son at the spot in western Beijing where he was killed during the crackdown. A group of strangers surrounded the small candlelight vigil, apparently trying to block television journalists from shooting.

The Chinese government has never fully disclosed what happened when the military crushed the weekslong, student-led pro-democracy protests, which it branded a “counterrevolutionary riot.” Hundreds, possibly more, were killed. Asked by a reporter about the demonstrations on Thursday, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu said, “There has already been a clear conclusion.”

In a purported manuscript of Li’s memoir whose excerpts were released by a Hong Kong publisher on Friday, the former premier defended the military action, saying Chinese soldiers acted in self-defense when they fired on citizens. Li says 313 people died, including 42 students and 23 soldiers — but no one was killed on the square itself. — AP

With just two hours to go before polls closed, only 14.6 percent of Hong Kong’s 3.4 million registered voters had cast ballots in the special election to fill vacancies in each of the territory’s five major electoral districts.

The contest was engineered by five legislators who resigned in January to set up a showdown against pro-Beijing candidates that would be a de facto referendum on democracy. But Hong Kong’s leading pro-China political parties boycotted and Beijing condemned the resignations.

While Hong Kong has continued to enjoy Western-style civil liberties under Chinese rule, its top leader is picked by a committee stacked with Beijing loyalists and its 60-member legislature is half-elected, half chosen by interest groups.

The five ex-legislators pressed ahead, running for their old seats and arguing that a strong turnout would be a mandate to negotiate with Beijing. They set a target turnout of 25 percent — which they estimate to be their base — but appear set to fall short.

“The turnout rate right now is so-so. I hope more people will come out to vote in the next few hours,” one of the former lawmakers, Tanya Chan, said.

The head of Hong Kong’s leading pro-Beijing political party said the referendum campaign had failed.

“The low turnout rate is a reflection of public opinion — most people in Hong Kong do not support the de facto referendum on universal suffrage. The whole by-election is a waste of public resources and taxpayers money,” said Tam Yiu-chung, chairman of the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong.

The five ex-legislators are still expected to easily win re-election, having run against a smattering of unknown candidates.

The five candidates made a last-minute appeal for votes on Sunday, canvassing restaurants where locals were enjoying dim sum and touring the territory in cars.

“Fight for a fair and just society,” one of the candidates, Leung Kwok-hung, said as he handed out campaign flyers outside a subway station in his district.

The referendum campaign has drawn mixed responses since it was launched. Independent polls have consistently shown more opponents than supporters.

Domestic worker Mak Ling-jen said she was disgusted by what she called a “political game.”

“Is this a joke — resigning and then participating in elections again? It is a waste of taxpayer dollars and public resources,” the 55-year-old said. “This whole thing is wrong and I am deeply unsettled by it.”

Toeing Beijing’s line, the Hong Kong administration has called the referendum campaign unnecessary, with leader Donald Tsang saying Friday that he and his senior officials won’t vote in the special election. But the government has gone ahead and organized the contest as required by law. — AP

Beijing opposes Sunday’s election as a challenge to its authority, and Hong Kong’s leader said he and his senior officials won’t vote in the contest.

The five activists, former legislators representing each of Hong Kong’s five major electoral districts, resigned from their seats in January. Their plan was to engineer a special election where they would compete against pro-Beijing candidates, effectively setting up a de facto territory-wide referendum on democracy.

But with the Chinese government questioning the campaign, Beijing loyalists in Hong Kong decided to boycott the election. As a result, the five activists are expected to easily win against a smattering of unknown candidates. Now, the focus has shifted to voter turnout.

Political analysts say turnout will be low because of the pro-China boycott. But the five former lawmakers say that if their base — which they estimate at 25 percent of Hong Kong’s 3.4 million registered voters — turns out to vote, they will consider the campaign a success.

“That would be a mandate,” Albert Chan, one of the five legislators who resigned, said on the sidelines of a rally late Friday.

The activists received a boost Saturday from Anson Chan, formerly Hong Kong’s No. 2 official and one of the territory’s most popular politicians. Chan, dubbed by supporters as “Hong Kong’s conscience,” campaigned with ex-legislator Tanya Chan on Hong Kong Island.

“If we don’t want Hong Kong to become a city where free expression is muzzled, if we don’t want to suffer from intimidation, we must exercise our votes tomorrow and send the government a clear message,” Anson Chan said.

The activists want full democracy in Hong Kong. As part of its semi-autonomous status under Chinese rule, Hong Kong enjoys Western-style civil liberties, but its leader is chosen by an 800-member committee with a pro-Beijing bias. The 60-member legislature is half-elected, half-chosen by interest groups, many of whom represent the business sector.

About 1,000 supporters attended the rally late Friday, blowing whistles and chanting slogans like “I want universal suffrage” and “The people raise their heads.” They sang along with a performance of John Lennon’s “Power to the People.”

Hong Kong leader Donald Tsang announced in a statement released late Friday that he and his top political appointees — including cabinet secretaries and deputy secretaries — won’t vote in the by-election. Tsang said he believes that many residents consider the poll unnecessary and a waste of taxpayer dollars.

Anson Chan blasted Tsang for skipping the election.

“I’ve never heard of a political leader leading the boycott of a legally organized election,” she said. — AP

HONG KONG (AFP) – The Internet company owned by Hong Kong’s richest man, Li Ka-shing, severed ties with Google’s search services Wednesday, sparking concerns that other companies may also pull away from the Web giant.

Stressing its adherence to China’s laws, Hong Kong-listed TOM Group issued a statement on behalf of subsidiary TOM Online following Google’s decision to stop censoring its Chinese search engine on Monday.

TOM, which runs online and mobile Internet services in mainland China, said it had stopped users from visiting its website through Google’s search engine service.

“TOM reiterates that as a Chinese company, we adhere to rules and regulations in China where we operate our businesses,” it said.

TOM Group is one of the key elements of the business empire of property tycoon Li, 81, who has strong ties with the Chinese government.

Li was ranked as the 14th wealthiest person in the world by Forbes magazine in March, when his net worth was 21 billion dollars.

Google co-founder Sergey Brin urged the US administration meanwhile to make the censorship row between China and his California-based company a “high priority.”

“Human rights issues deserve equal time to the trade issues that are high priority now — I hope this gets taken seriously,” Brin told the British newspaper The Guardian.

“Since services and information are our most successful exports, if regulations in China effectively prevent us from being competitive, then they are a trade barrier,” Brin said.

China has attacked Google for stopping censorship of its Chinese-language search engine but said there should be no broader fall-out in Sino-US ties provided the issue is not politicised in the United States.

China’s state media slammed Google again on Wednesday, saying the Internet titan was “not god” and accusing it of working with US intelligence.

“For Chinese people, Google is not god, and even if it puts on a show of politics and values, it is still not god,” said the overseas edition of the People’s Daily.

“Google is not chaste when it comes to values. Its cooperation and collusion with the US intelligence and security agencies is well-known,” the ruling Communist Party’s official mouthpiece said.

Chronology: Google’s operations in China

The English-language Global Times, a subsidiary of the People’s Daily, also hit out at Google, saying it had made a “huge strategic misstep in the promising Chinese market.”

China Daily relished the “moment of peace” created by Google’s decision, which came two months after it first said it had been the victim of cyberattacks originating in China and was no longer willing to bow to censors.

“Google’s efforts to make this issue into a political spat have naturally met with strong opposition and criticism from the Chinese government and society,” the newspaper said.

The paper slammed Google for offering China’s 384 million web users access to “pornography and subversive content,” saying the Chinese Web would “continue to grow in a cleaner and more peaceful environment” without google.cn.

A Google spokeswoman in Singapore declined to discuss TOM’s decision, but said the search giant planned to continue serving mainland Chinese users by re-routing its service through Hong Kong, a semi-autonomous Chinese territory.

“We made this decision as a matter of principle, but we understand this is a complicated process with ramifications on the technology side and the business said,” she said.

Elinor Leung, head of Asia Internet and telecommunications research with brokerage CLSA, said it was likely other Google partners, including phone giant China Mobile and Internet portal operator Sina, would follow TOM’s lead.

“They want to play it safe,” the Hong Kong-based analyst said. “China Mobile would likely terminate their mobile phone search. I think that would be the biggest loss.”

Although Google’s mainland Chinese sales are relatively small, China Mobile pulling away would be a big blow for the US company and present a major opportunity to China-based rivals, Leung said.

“The obvious one would be Baidu,” she added, in reference to the Chinese search engine.

China Mobile did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Despite Google’s promise of uncensored results, searches on the mainland of politically sensitive keywords continue to generate the browser message “cannot display the webpage” — suggesting China’s “Great Firewall” of Internet control remained intact. — AFP