Hong Kong protests new leader

Thousands of people protested in the streets of Hong Kong on Sunday against last week's selection of the semi-autonomous city's new leader, a property consultant with close ties to the mainland government in Beijing.

Organizers said about 15,000 people took part in the demonstration, which was the first against the new leader since his selection, while police put the figure at around 5,300. Protesters chanted slogans like "One person, one vote" and "Leung step down."

Leung Chun-ying, a 57-year-old millionaire, won 689 votes in the 1,200-seat committee that chooses Hong Kong's chief executive. The committee is full of loyalists to the Communist government in Beijing.

"Beijing blatantly interfered in our election," protester and retiree Lam Sum-shing, 69, told AFP news agency. "He was not chosen by the seven million Hong Kong people, he's chosen merely by 689 pro-Beijing elitists."

Hong Kong, a former British colony, was handed over to Chinese rule in 1997 under the "one country, two systems" model. Broad freedoms were preserved, but the city's residents do not get to choose their leader by popular vote.

Leung's opponent, former government advisor Henry Tang, was first seen as Beijing's preferred candidate until a series of scandals marred his campaign. The mainland government then reportedly told members of the electoral assembly to vote for Leung.

Opinion polls suggested many Hong Kong residents wanted neither Leung nor Tang, but rather universal suffrage so they can choose their own leader.

acb/slk (AP, AFP)