The Legco meeting was called off after pro-government legislators walked out of the chamber when their pro-democracy rivals called for a minute's silence to honor former mainland leader Zhao Ziyang, who passed away Monday at the age of 85, and refused to return.

In an emergency meeting Friday both camps stood by their actions.

``Since they [the pro-democracy camp] refuse to promise to strictly follow Legco's rules of procedure, we cannot promise we won't stage another walkout should they breach these rules again,'' Liberal Party chairman James Tien said.

During the meeting, a majority of lawmakers, mostly from the pro-Beijing camp, called on Fan to get ``tougher'' in dealing with members who breach the rules of procedure for council meetings.

They hoped she will eject those who repeatedly disrupt council meetings.

In reply, Fan said she will ``seriously consider'' this option if a majority of lawmakers make such a request but added that ejecting a legislator is the last thing she wants to do.

The pro-democracy camp's tribute to Zhao was made in defiance of a warning by Beijing that any official commemoration for the former leader could be unconstitutional.

Fan said on Friday that an official tribute should be agreed by everyone and she was sure that if she had given the go-ahead, it would have been opposed by some lawmakers.

The pro-democracy camp said Fan's decision had forced them to go ahead with the unapproved tribute at the risk of breaching the rules of procedure.

``We told Fan that we disagreed with her ruling, which downgraded Zhao's status,'' Democratic Party chief Lee Wing-tat said after the meeting.

``If you say Zhao's contributions were not significant enough, how about the contributions of [former premier] Zhu Rongji and [former president] Jiang Zemin?

``You can't say their contributions were as great as those of Deng Xiaoping.

``Her reasoning is illogical. It is unacceptable,'' he said.

Lee said his party hopes Fan will consult all lawmakers in future before she makes a major decision so they can make a counter-proposal if the first one is rejected.

He said the pro-democracy camp will abide by Legco's rules of procedure except in ``exceptional'' circumstances.''

Radical activist ``Long Hair'' Leung Kwok-hung, who has been under repeated attack for disturbing Legco meetings, said he takes full responsibility for what he has done and that his actions have nothing to do with the pro-democracy camp.

``If they [pro-Beijing camp] don't like me, they can move a motion to impeach me. But to ask me to guarantee not to break the rules again, no way.

``What kind of an era is this? We are not in a secondary school,'' he said.

cannix.yau@globalchina.com