Brawls erupt in Hong Kong parliament

TWO lawmakers who want Hong Kong to split from China wrestled with security in parliament yesterday, with one of them dragged from the chamber and security staff left injured, as fears grow Beijing will step in over the saga.

Widespread concerns that China is tightening its grip on the semi-autonomous city are fuelling an independence movement in Hong Kong.

In the third consecutive week of chaos in the legislature, pro-independence lawmakers Baggio Leung and Yau Wai-ching entered the chamber despite being banned from doing so, pending the result of a judicial review into whether they can take up their seats.

Yau ran up to a table, set up her own microphone and proceeded to read out her oath. She was then surrounded by members of security and carried from the chamber when she tried to resist.

After also trying to take his oath, Baggio was flanked by other pro-democracy lawmakers who pushed against at least five security officers who surrounded them in a cordon and tried to push them out.

The meeting was adjourned and moved to a smaller conference room prompting another clash when Yau, Baggio and a group of supporters tried to push their way in, shouting “One, two, three, go!” as they tried to barge through the doors.

Six security staff were injured, stretch- ered out into ambulances and taken to hospital.

Yau and Baggio won seats in citywide polls last month, in which a number of new lawmakers advocating self-determination or independence swept to victory. But they are yet to be sworn in to the Legco – Hong Kong’s lawmaking body.

Their oath-taking was put on hold and they have been barred from meetings, pending a judicial review into their first attempt at taking the pledge three weeks ago. At that ceremony, they draped themselves in “Hong Kong is not China” f lags and altered the wording of their pledges, including derogatory terms and expletives.