Prodemocracy activists vowed on Sunday to bring Hong Kong's financial hub to a standstill after China's parliament rejected their demands for the right to freely choose the former British colony's next leader in 2017.
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress endorsed a framework to let only two or three candidates run in the 2017 leadership vote. All candidates must first obtain majority backing from a nominating committee likely to be stacked with Beijing loyalists.
The relatively tough decision by the NPC — China's final arbiter on the city's democratic affairs — makes it almost impossible for opposition democrats to get on the ballot.