Celebration and protest as China president visits Hong Kong

HONG KONG (Reuters) - President Xi Jinping arrives in Hong Kong on Thursday to celebrate its 20th anniversary of Chinese rule, but he faces a city divided, mass protests and aggrieved crowds resentful of Beijing's growing meddling in local affairs.

Britain returned Hong Kong to Chinese rule on July 1, 1997, under a "one country, two systems" formula which guarantees wide-ranging autonomy and judicial independence not seen in mainland China.

Pro-democracy activists climb the Golden Bauhinia sculpture during a protest to demand full democracy ahead of the 20th anniversary of the handover from Britain to China, in Hong Kong, China.

The central government in Beijing has promised Hong Kong's capitalist system will remain unchanged for "at least" 50 years, but it has not clarified what happens after that.

Fears of the creeping influence of Communist Party leaders in Beijing are highlighted by the abduction by mainland agents of some Hong Kong booksellers who specialised in politically sensitive material and Beijing's efforts in disqualifying two pro-independence lawmakers elected to the city legislature.

An annual protest to press for full democracy in the city is expected to take place after Xi's departure on the afternoon of July 1. The city is already on tenterhooks. On the eve of Xi's visit, police arrested pro-democracy protesters, some of whom scrambled up a monument symbolising the city's handover from British to Chinese rule.

Part of the major rift under Chinese rule in Hong Kong has been a tenacious push by activists to get China to live up to a constitutional promise under Hong Kong's mini-constitution, the Basic Law, to allow universal suffrage as an "ultimate aim."

"This promise has been shattered under the watchful eyes of the whole world," organisers of a planned July 1 rally wrote in a statement. "Hong Kong has been lied to for 20 years. Let's retake Hong Kong for a real and fully fledged democracy."