Rowdy Scenes At Land Task Force's First Forum

There were rowdy scenes at the first public forum held by the Task Force on Land Supply in a community hall in Happy Valley on Saturday.

A group of demonstrators called on the government to resume vacant land owned by developers as well as the golf course in Fanling to build homes. Others said they opposed reclamation and using country parks to build flats.

A group of the protesters including some from League of Social Democrats tore up copies of the task force's public consultation document on how to increase land supply in the territory.

Democratic Party lawmaker Andrew Wan and more than two dozen members from different land concern groups staged a protest outside the community hall and echoed similar concerns. They also said only three of them were allowed into the venue. Wan accused the task force of deliberately turning a deaf ear to their voices.

"The opportunity for the concern group are not fair. We get the notice about this forum very late -- in the early morning around 7 am," he said. "But we have to show our interest on or before 9 am. That is a very short notice time," Wan added.

The chairman of the task force Stanley Wong denied that the protesters had been screened out. He said seats at the forum had been allocated on a first-come-first-served basis.

"We are conducting a number of public engagements activities including meeting district councillors, meeting different professional bodies and chambers of commerce and so forth," Wong said.

"They also include 40 different roving exhibitions and all our task force members will personally attend some of them. All opinions that will be given would be collected," he added.