Zhang will meet with a group of veteran pro-democracy lawmakers tomorrow evening, a rare move observers say is created to defuse frustrations.
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The three-day visit by Zhang Dejiang, who chairs China’s communist-controlled legislature, is the first by such a senior official in four years and comes as concerns grow in semi-autonomous Hong Kong that Beijing is tightening its grip.
Many young activists, however, continue to be increasingly vocal about Hong Kong’s independence.
Hong Kong police were said to be deploying as many as 6,000 officers during Mr Zhang’s visit, twice the number of officers deployed during former President Hu Jintao’s trip in 2012.
Frustrations and anger simmered for more almost two years and now, it appears, the same anti-Beijing protest groups are expected to take to the streets in the wake of Zhang’s visit.
He added protesters will be banned from using drones during Zhang’s visit.
Residue of glue lies between paving tiles near the Hong Kong convention centre.
Five persons including a Hong Kong man linked to the city’s pro-democracy opposition have been arrested in China over a plot to use a drone to disrupt a fence-mending visit by a top Chinese Communist party leader to the global financial hub, a media report said today.
Zhang Dejiang, chairman of the National People’s Congress and responsible for Hong Kong affairs, will be in Hong Kong this week meeting with business leaders and members of parliament.
Hong Kong also relies on China for food, water and electricity, making independence nearly impossible in practice.
Ms Lau said she would lay much of the blame on what she described as Mr Leung’s combative behavior.
Mr Zhang’s visit comes ahead of key Legislative Council elections in September, when pro-Beijing parties hope to secure a veto-proof super-majority in the 70-seat body and several new, more radical groups plan to seek a voice in government. On Monday, China said that Hong Kong “will never leave the motherland again”.
The trip may also help Mr Xi lay the ground for a pair of milestones next year.
Then, in July 2017, Hong Kong will hold events to mark the 20th anniversary of its handover from the United Kingdom, an occasion that could bring Mr Xi to town for the first time as president.
Hundreds of protesters mainly students pitched tents and occupied main location of the city, attacked police.
Local media also report that police have been stationed on Hong Kong’s iconic Lion Rock mountain in an effort to prevent the practice of anti-Beijing banners being unfurled from there.
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“Mutual distrust is abundant, and both sides are ready to see each other from a worst-case-scenario perspective”, said Mr Ding, of the University of Science and Technology. “The situation he faces is much more complex”.
