bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

sponsorType

authorLocations

authors

paywallTypes

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

factSheets

series

knowledgeQuestion

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

copyrighted

customTimezone

liveContents

Thomas Chan

Chris Lau

The rally outside the Legislative Council building ended more peacefully than expected after the vote, with pro-democracy protesters chanting cheerful slogans and government supporters looking relatively calm.
When democracy supporters heard the live broadcast of the vote, some clapped their hands, hugged one another and opened their yellow umbrellas - the symbol of last year's Occupy movement.
"I am very excited. I hope we can fight until the day we have real universal suffrage," one woman said.
Most pro-government supporters looked emotionless.
When Robert Chow Yung, founder of the pro-establishment Alliance for Peace and Democracy, yelled "2016", a reference to Legco elections next year, the crowd was supposed to reply in unison against the pan-democrats: "Pay the cost of being voted out". But few did.
A group of pro-government demonstrators clad in white T-shirts with red numbers even turned their backs on the main stage as guests, including lawmakers from the Beijing-loyalist Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong, addressed supporters.

They were then dispersed by Chow in less than an hour after the proposal was voted down.
Discarded placards were piled up in an open area next to Tamar Park.
Before the vote, pro-establishment protesters outnumbered those who were calling for democracy outside the Legco building - with most of the government supporters, mainly elderly people, staying in the shade.
Several hundred well-organised pro-government supporters, some in uniform, held placards with slogans such as, "Support the political reform" and "2017: Make it happen" as lawmakers debated inside.
When DAB members spoke onstage, several men were seen ushering groups of people to stand in front of the stage. One man, who appeared to be a leader of the pro-government side, choreographed a photo opportunity, carefully arranging supporters to stand in front of the banners.
The police presence was low-key, with uniformed officers patrolling around Tamar Park and outside the main entrances of Legco. The force had previously said it would mobilise 7,000 officers from across the city during the Legco debate.


Hong Kong protesters demonstrate calm after vote on election reform