Beijing bans student leaders

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Beijing bans student leaders from taking trip to mainland to press for democracy

Three student leaders at the heart of the Occupy Central protests are demanding the Hong Kong government explain why their travel documents were invalidated yesterday, hours before they were to fly to Beijing to press their demands for true universal suffrage.

It is extremely rare for authorities to revoke a Hongkonger's "home return permit" before they even reach the mainland. Local pro-democracy activists have in the past either had their entry denied without their travel permits affected, had their applications for renewal of the permits rejected, or had their permits confiscated on mainland soil.

The students and pan-democratic lawmakers said the decision was an "affront to the law" and a sign that Beijing would not listen to Hong Kong people's views.

This came as US President Barack Obama gave his strongest statement yet on the Occupy movement, saying that Hongkongers were demanding a universal, not Western, value.

The students said they were "shocked and angry" to discover that their travel documents had been invalidated. "Why is a great state like China afraid of just three students?" federation secretary general Alex Chow Yong-kang said. "We have not even stepped on mainland soil."

It is the first time Federation of Students representatives have had their entry permits terminated; three times in the past 26 years, delegations have been allowed to visit over sensitive issues.

Chow said he would demand an explanation from the Hong Kong government because it was only Cathay Pacific, the airline they were booked on, that told them their permits were revoked.

The Security Bureau did not comment. An Immigration Department spokeswoman said the Airport Authority was responsible for the area where the three were turned back. The authority said it did not have the power to turn back the students.

The students wanted to go to Beijing to seek meetings with state leaders including Premier Li Keqiang to express a demand for genuine universal suffrage for the 2017 chief executive election. They had three banners bearing slogans with Occupy protesters' signatures.

S.C. M . Post.