Wednesday, October 10, 2007

Umbrella rally for democracy in Hong Kong

HONG KONG—Thousands of people in Hong Kong took part in a democracy march and a world-record breaking attempt using umbrellas, calling for a faster pace of democratic reforms and direct elections in 2012.

Gathered in a large park, around 5,000 people hoisted yellow umbrellas to form a massive yellow "2012" which is the date the pro-democracy camp wants direct elections to be realised.

"Fighting for democracy means you have to fight for democracy. Democracy is not going to fall from the sky," said legislator Ronny Tong, a chief organiser of Sunday's "Umbrella" rally, which he hopes will gain an entry in the Guinness Book of World Records.

Hong Kong's mini-constitution promises direct elections as the "ultimate aim" but is vague on a timetable, giving Beijing's leaders scope to dictate the pace of progress. In 2004, Beijing ruled out direct elections in the city until at least 2012.  Read on >>

No comments:

Post a Comment