Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam on Tuesday said she never offered a resignation to China, despite an audio recording of the leader saying she would have quit "if had a choice".
Lam said while it "might have been easy" to step down, she told herself that she and her team should stay on and deal with the protests, which have now turned into a mass movement demanding for a greater autonomy and democracy for the Chinese ruled city that was restored to to Beijing in 1997 under "One country, two systems" deal.
Protesters have called for the resignation of Lam as the leader of the semi-autonomous region rocked with protests from last three months. Denying such demands, she said she had a word with Beijing about quitting. She said it was "very inappropriate" that an audio recording of her "very private session" was leaked.
She added that she and her team would help Hong Kong to go through the difficult times. Earlier, in an audio recording that was leaked, Lam was heard saying: "For a chief executive to have caused this huge havoc to Hong Kong is unforgivable."
In her remarks in a closed-door meeting with a group of business persons, she said that if she had a choice, she would "quit, having made a deep apology."
The protests ongoing since June 9 began against China's proposed law undermining Hong Kong's independent judiciary. The now-withdrawn law made possible extradition of criminals from Hong Kong into mainland China. Lam has however been unable to end the upheaval, often turning violent.
Lam, who took charge as Hong Kong CEO in March 2017, had earlier said in a private meeting that China had "absolutely no plan" to deploy People's Liberation Army troops on to the city's streets to quell protests, as it did in 1989 during the bloody Tiananmen crackdown in Beijing.
