HONG KONG -- Hong Kong police and protesters faced off early today near the city government headquarters as authorities began trying to clear the streets of a few hundred people who remained after protests that stretched deep into Sunday night.
The police asked for cooperation in clearing the road but said the protesters could stay on the sidewalks. Protesters, many in masks and other gear to guard against possible use of tear gas, responded with chants, some kneeling in front of the officers.
The move came after activists rejected an apology from the city's top leader for her handling of legislation that has stoked fears of China expanding its control over the former British colony.
Groups of police, most in normal uniforms and not riot gear, sought to clear the roads of metal and plastic barricades. In some places, the protesters quickly moved to put them back to block traffic.
Hundreds of protesters were sitting or lying along a main road through downtown, but they were scattered over a relatively wide area.
Activists called on Hong Kong residents to boycott classes and work, though it was unclear how many might heed that call.
A day earlier, nearly 2 million of the city's 7 million people turned out to protest, according to estimates by protest organizers. Police said 338,000 were counted on the designated protest route in the "peak period" of the march.
The protests have become one of the toughest tests of the territory's special status since Beijing took over the former British colony in a 1997 handover.
The scenes were similar to those seen nearly five years earlier when protesters camped for weeks in the streets to protest rules that prevented the direct election of the city's chief executive, the top local official. Those demonstrations became known as the Umbrella Movement when protesters used umbrellas to shield themselves from pepper spray.
One of the activists arrested after those demonstrations, Joshua Wong, was released from prison this morning. He served half of a two-month jail sentence for contempt related to his involvement in the 2014 protests advocating a more democratic elections process.
On Sunday, crowds gathered outside the police headquarters and Chief Executive Carrie Lam's office. Lam on Saturday suspended her effort to force passage of the bill, which would allow some suspects to be sent for trial in mainland China.
The move did not appease Hong Kong residents who see the bill as one of many steps chipping away at Hong Kong's freedoms and legal autonomy. Opponents worry the law could be used to send criminal suspects to China to potentially face vague political charges, possible torture and unfair trials.
Protesters are also angered over the forceful tactics by police in quelling unrest at a demonstration on Wednesday.
In a statement issued late Sunday, Lam noted the demonstrations and said the government "understands that these views have been made out of love and care for Hong Kong."
"The chief executive apologizes to the people of Hong Kong for this and pledges to adopt a most sincere and humble attitude to accept criticisms and make improvements in serving the public," it said.
The pro-democracy activists said the apology was not enough, noting that while Lam was suspending the legislation, she was not withdrawing it.
"This is a total insult to and fooling the people who took to the street!" the Civil Human Rights Front said in a statement.
The marchers want Lam to scrap the extradition bill, which is supported by the communist leadership in Beijing, and to resign.
Some participants were skeptical over whether having Lam step down would help.
"It doesn't really matter because the next one would be just as evil," said Kayley Fung, 27.
Protesters have mainly focused their anger on Lam, who has had little choice but to carry through dictates issued by Beijing.
Many here believe Hong Kong's legal autonomy has been significantly diminished despite Beijing's insistence that it is still honoring its promise, dubbed "one country, two systems," that the territory can retain its own social, legal and political system for 50 years after the handover.
The rally drew marchers both young and old, some pushing strollers or carrying slumbering infants. Few wore face masks or seemed to be trying to hide their identities, in contrast with demonstrations Wednesday, when participants expressed worries over possible retribution from the authorities.
The police presence on Sunday was considerably more relaxed, with officers deployed mainly to direct traffic as the protesters wound their way through Hong Kong's commercial center from a sprawling downtown park to government headquarters.
Farther down the parade route, mourners lined up to lay flowers and pay respects at a makeshift memorial for a man who fell to his death Saturday after hanging a protest banner that read in part, "Make Love, No Shoot" and "No Extradition to China."
The man slipped from the grasp of rescuers after clinging for a time to scaffolding outside a shopping mall. He missed a large cushion set up to capture him and was declared dead at a nearby hospital.
Information for this article was contributed by Tassanee Vejpongsa of The Associated Press.
A Section on 06/17/2019