But in his first public comments since police fired tear gas at demonstrators, Hong Kong's chief executive Leung Chun-Ying called on protest leaders to "immediately" withdraw their followers from the streets.
"Occupy Central founders had said
repeatedly that if the movement is getting out of control, they would call for
it to stop," he said.
"I'm now asking them to fulfil the
promise they made to society, and stop this campaign immediately."
But Occupy, the main group behind the last two
days of street protests, rejected Mr Leung's demands and renewed its calls for
him to step down.
Protesters light up the
street with their mobile phones
"If Leung Chun-Ying announces his
resignation, this occupation will be at least temporarily stopped in a short
period of time, and we will decide on the next move," co-founder Chan
Kin-Man told reporters.
"This would be a very important signal,
then at least we know the government has changed their attitude and wants to
solve this crisis," he said.
Some demonstrators have worn masks and
resorted to umbrellas or plastic capes to protect themselves - prompting the
phrase "umbrella revolution" to trend on social media.
However, in a shift of tactics, uniformed
police looked on from behind barricades and have so far not intervened in the
peaceful protest.
The demonstrations have
brought the centre of Hong Kong to a standstill
Sky's Asia Correspondent Mark Stone, on the
scene, said the activists were "good natured but utterly driven".
On Sunday night, riot officers fire 87 rounds
of tear gas after being charged by "violent protesters", with police
saying 41 people had been injured.
Britain's Prime Minister David Cameron said that he is "deeply concerned" about the situation in
the former colony and hopes it can be resolved.
China, meanwhile, has warned the international
community not to "interfere".Protesters run away from
tear gas
Officials called on the activists to leave
peacefully on Monday but thousands remained camped on a normally busy road near
government headquarters.
Organisers estimate as many as 80,000 people
have taken to the streets since Friday.
With no imminent end in sight, China appears
to have blocked photo-sharing site Instagram, suggesting authorities are
worried about inspiring similar protests on the mainland.
Many shared photos of the demo have been
hashtagged "Occupy Central".
Police try to block a
street leading to the financial district
The phrase was also blocked on Sunday on
Weibo, China's version of Twitter.
The unrest began after it was ruled that in
2017 Hong Kong residents must choose their leader, or chief executive, from
candidates picked by Beijing who must declare their "love" for China
and its Communist system.
Under the agreement of the 1997 handover from
Britain to China, Hong Kong was given an independent legal and political
framework.
Unlike the mainland, protests are allowed -
but the current demonstrations are potentially the biggest political challenge
to Beijing since the Tiananmen Square crackdown 25 years ago.
The protests have affected Hong Kong's
important commercial hub, forcing buses to be cancelled or diverted and some
banks to close.
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