HONG KONG: Tens of thousands took part in a protest march in Hong Kong on Sunday to call for universal suffrage as the territory marked the first 10 years of Chinese rule.

Hong Kong's former deputy leader Anson Chan and Cardinal Joseph Zen, the head of the Catholic church in the territory, were among the high-profile figures joining the demonstration. However organisers said they felt let down after China's President Hu Jintao left Hong Kong before the start of the rally.

Since the handover, activists have been calling for full democracy in the city. The lack of political progress in the global financial hub has sparked mass public protests in the past, with half a million people taking to the streets in 2004.—AFP