Although the turnout was just 1,500, half of what organizers expected, they denied people had become apathetic about the issue and said it does not take a lot of people to get Beijing's attention.

The 1,500 protesters strode through Central in a three-hour protest that ended peacefully at the central government's Hong Kong Liaison Office in Sheung Wan.

The SAR government responded quickly to the protest by releasing a statement that said it deemed the NPC's forthcoming legal interpretation as ``lawful and constitutional'' and that it would be in the ``best interests of Hong Kong people.''

But Chong Yiu-kwong, convenor of the Civil and Human Rights Front which organized Sunday's march, said: ``It is a hasty interpretation. The [Basic Law] is the fundamental spirit of one country, two systems.

``It requires the central government's respect or the concept cannot be implemented.''

The three-hour rally was divided into a one-hour gathering at Chater Garden, opposite the Bank of China headquarters, and a two-hour march, during which protesters chanted slogans and four loudspeakers on a lorry maintained loudly: ``Oppose the interpretation of the Basic Law. Protect a high degree of autonomy.''

In Chater Garden there was a festive mood as people sang songs and made speeches.

Wan Chai District Councilor Mary Ann King sang several songs on stage - one titled The pain for loving Hong Kong - to convey her ``disappointment'' at the interpretation.

`` I felt very bad when I heard the devious reasoning [that supports the interpretation],'' she said.

In one corner of the garden, Long Hair Leung Kwok-hung indulged in his own fund-raising campaign.

``Hello,'' he announced. ``I'm Long Hair. I have badges and T-shirts to sell.''

Others were even more creative. Matthew Ho, 40, sat silently in the crowd with a placard which read:

``The imminent interpretation of the Basic Law is [uglier] than Camilla [Parker Bowles]...''

He said he had been inspired by similar placards displayed by Italian football fans.

``Overthrow the Communist Party,'' shouted an elderly man, who gave his name as Wong.

He said he had joined the protests because of the NPCSC's first interpretation of the Basic Law in 1999 which barred his two children from coming to live with him here.

That interpretation blocked thousands of mainland-born children from joining one or other of their parents in Hong Kong.

As the protesters reached the Central Government liaison office, they burst black balloons they carried and a funeral wreath - marking the demise of the rule of law - was tied to a barrier placed to confine the crowd.

dennis.chong@singtaonewscorp.com