HK lawmakers dragged from chamber as leader heckled for second day

HONG KONG: Pro-democracy lawmakers were dragged out of Hong Kong’s legislature by security guards on Thursday after they heckled the city’s pro-Beijing leader for a second day running, the latest outburst of political rancour in the strife-torn city.

Chief Executive Carrie Lam has faced an outpouring of anger from her opponents since the legislature opened its doors for a new session on Wednesday, three months after the building was trashed by masked protesters.

Lam was unable to give a State of the Union-style policy speech on Wednesday after pro-democracy lawmakers, who form a minority on the pro-Beijing-stacked legislature, repeatedly interrupted her.

Instead, she was forced to deliver the address via a pre-recorded video. Lam returned to the Legislative Council on Thursday to answer questions from lawmakers about the content of that policy speech.

But chaos erupted once again as her opponents chanted slogans and were dragged one-by-one from the chamber. Later in the evening she hosted a Facebook Live event in which angry emojis and critical comments dominated her page.

Hong Kong has been rocked by the worst political unrest in decades. Millions have taken to the streets, initially against a now-dropped bid to allow extraditions to the authoritarian Chinese mainland.

But after Beijing and Lam took a hard line, the movement snowballed into a broader push for democracy and police accountability. Violence has escalated on both sides of the political divide with hardcore protesters wielding petrol bombs and stones, and police responding with ever-increasing amounts of tear gas, rubber bullets and even live rounds in recent weeks.

Vigilante attacks have also flourished. A leading figure within Hong Kong’s democracy movement said Thursday he was recovering after being set upon by a gang of hammer-wielding thugs, the latest assault on Beijing critics in Hong Kong.