Opposition Protests Disrupt Legco Committees

The weekly meetings of two Legco committees had to be cut short on Friday after pro-democracy lawmakers repeatedly questioned the security measures in place in the complex in recent days.

An amber alert has been in place at the legislature since Wednesday, the day violent clashes erupted after thousands of protesters converged outside the building to oppose extradition law amendments.

Lawmakers questioned why Legco is still in lockdown when meetings are being arranged, and why the police can enter and leave the legislature whenever they want.

But the chairwoman of the House Committee, Starry Lee of the DAB, decided to end the meeting early because of the tense atmosphere, saying it was not necessary to finish handling the agenda items on Friday. She accused the pro-democracy camp of misusing the meeting time.

The Finance Committee also had to wind up its business early as opposition lawmakers continued to raise objections to the extradition plans.

The committee's chairman Chan Kin-por accused the opposition camp of putting politics above livelihood issues, as there is still a backlog of pending funding requests.

But pro-democracy lawmakers refused to oblige and chanted slogans, calling for the withdrawal of the extradition bill.