Hong Kong's constitution also provides for eventual universal suffrage, but the government has refused to discuss a timetable for a public debate on this. Such amendments would require majority approval from the legislature, which is packed with pro-Beijing lawmakers.
"Most people out there at the protest will be unhappy with [Hong Kong leader] Tung Chee-hwa (
Lecturer Lo said that by asking for concessions like the trade pact, Hong Kong was speeding up its integration with China and making itself more beholden to the central government.
"Hong Kong people see it as a trade-off," Lo said. "Hong Kong has become increasingly economically dependent on [China] and its political autonomy has been crushed."
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