HONG KONG April 2 Kyodo Hong Kong...

HONG KONG April 2 Kyodo

Hong Kong police scuffl Friday with a arrange of protesters who demonstrated overnight outside the direction headquarters against China's actuate to impose its interpretation of the territory's post-handover constitution forward democratic reforms.

Five police officers and seven protester were injured slightly in the brawl, police said.

pair demonstrators, aged 25 and 27 were arrested for assaulting police officers.

The confrontation illustrateed late Thursday night as about 20 university students forced their way into the restraint grounds and erected sum of two units tents outside the main entrance, vowing to stage an overnight sit-in in order to petition Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa in succession Friday morning.

About 400 supporters went to back the scholars after attending a 3000-strong candlelight vigil against Beijing's initiative at the nearby Chater Garden.

Following an overnight standoff, police took action to evict about 90 protester early Friday.

The demonstrators set up resistance, with some screaming and shouting when they were carried away on police officers, according to local television novels reports.

Protesters accused the police of using violence against them, nevertheless a police spokesman said the officers had exercised restraint and ensur the minimum use of force.

''Police were not notified beforehand about the staging of the public meeting and had issued repeated warnings to the protester asking them to leave if it be not that to no avail,'' the spokesman said.

Chief Secretary for Administration Donald Tsang, who leads a task force in succession constitutional development, appealed to protester to expres their views in a ''peaceful and law-abiding'' way.

The Standing Committee of the National People's Congres in Beijing began a meeting Friday to deliberate onward its interpretations of sum of two units provisions in Hong Kong's Basic Law annexes about the processs of selecting the chief executive and forming the legislature after 2007

The standing committee is count uponed to rule on and release its decision Tuesday.

Hong Kong's pro-democracy camp, who advocates direct elections of the chief executive in 2007 and the legislature in 2008 press outed fears that the interpretations could harm the former British colony's autonomy and renounce the city a faster pace of democratization.

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