China won’t let Hong Kong Leader Carrie Lam step down even if she wanted to, said a senior city government official close to the Carrie Lam said on Monday 17 Jun 2019.
“She’s appointed by the central government, so for her to step down requires a very high level of considered discussion and deliberation at the mainland level,” the official said.
“The central government will continue to firmly support the chief executive and efforts by the government of the Special Administrative Region to govern according to law,” Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Lu Kang told a regular briefing.
Carrie Lam had announced on Saturday 15 Jun 2019 at a press conference to indefinitely suspend extradition bill which will allow suspects to be extradited to mainland China.
The extradition bill, which will cover residents living in Hong Kong and foreign and Chinese nationals living or traveling in Hong Kong, has many concerned it may threaten the rule of law that underpins Hong Kong’s international financial status.
Opposition to the proposed extradition bill had sparked the first major protest on previous Sunday 09 Jun 2019 which the protest organizers estimated more than a million people in Hong Kong took part in.
The second major protest which took place on Sunday 16 Jun 2019 saw people in Hong Kong mostly dressed in black demanding Carrie Lam to step down.
