Hong Kong leader Carrie Lam says China extradition bill is “dead”

Hong Kong’s chief executive, Carrie Lam, on Tuesday, attempted to end what has been the territory’s worst political crisis in decades by declaring a controversial extradition bill that sparked weeks of protests is “dead”.

The bill, which would allow people in Hong Kong to be sent to mainland China to face trial in courts controlled by the Communist Party, sparked huge and at times violent street protests and plunged the former British colony into turmoil.

In mid-June, Lam responded to protests that drew hundreds of thousands of people on to the streets by suspending the bill, but that did not stop demonstrations that shut government offices and brought parts of the financial centre to a standstill.

Her latest attempt to restore order did not satisfy many protesters who stood by demands that she completely withdraw the bill.

“There are still lingering doubts about the government’s sincerity or worries whether the government will restart the process in the Legislative Council,” Lam told reporters on Tuesday.

“So, I reiterate here, there is no such plan, the bill is dead.” The government’s work on the bill had been a “total failure”, she said.

But soon after the press conference, protesters panned her “word games” and vowed to organise further protests if she refused to meet demands. Others said that without the bill’s withdrawal, according to the rules and procedures of the legislature, they could only rely on Lam’s promises that it would not be revived.

Protesters referred to Lam’s track record of going back on promises made to the public, for example that she would resign if the public demanded it. On Tuesday, Lam refused to step down.

She also refused to meet other demands, including for the release of those arrested in the protests and an independent investigation into police use of force on protesters on 12 June – when teargas, rubber bullets and truncheons were deployed on largely peaceful crowds.