New Rally Called, Legco Cancels Friday Meeting

Legislative Council officials have pushed debate on the extradition bill even further away, as the organisers of a mass rally over the issue said they are calling for another protest march this Sunday.

The rally last Sunday had attracted over a million people to the streets to register their protest.

The organisers, the Civil Human Rights Front, said on Thursday that they are planning another rally to keep up pressure on the authorities over the plan to start allowing extraditions to the mainland.

As well as a rally on Sunday, the front called for a city-wide general strike on Monday, adding that it was seeking police permission for protests on both days.

Labour Party veteran Lee Cheuk-yan urged the public to join Sunday's rally, saying he believes there's every chance the people can force the government to abandon its extraditions plan.

"It is a very critical moment for Hong Kong and we need to come out together in unity," he said.

On Wednesday, tens of thousands of people had turned up outside Legco to protest against the extradition bill as lawmakers were scheduled to begin debating the government's proposals. But the siege forced the Legco president to cancel the council meeting.

On Thursday morning, Legco officials issued a statement said the day's meeting would not be going ahead either, and they later said Friday's meeting had also been cancelled.