Beijing plans to remove Hong Kong's chief executive Carrie Lam, according to reports. This comes nearly five months of the pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong. The pro-Beijing leader has so far had the support of the Chinese government.
However, as protests and arrests mount, China may be drawing up a plan to replace Lam with an interim executive, FT reported quoting unnamed sources. However, sources told the newspaper that the plan would be dependent on the situation in the city first stabilising so that Beijing is not seen as giving in to violence.
Earlier this month, Lam invoked a colonial-era emergency law to ban face masks, setting off a new wave of protests and vandalism that shut down much of the city’s transport network.
According to the report, if Chinese President Xi Jinping decided to go ahead with the plan to remove Lam, the replacement would be installed by March.
