HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong's beleaguered leader Carrie Lam faced her public with humility, but she may not get the response she hoped for.

In a face-off with an antagonistic audience, Lam quietly took blow after blow as citizens at a town hall session Thursday vented anger at her refusal to give more concessions to finally end more than three months of anti-government protests that have rocked the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.

After the dialogue ended, Lam stayed holed up in the building for another four hours to avoid confrontation with angry protesters outside.

But analysts say Lam's hope of using the community engagement to buy some goodwill that will diffuse tensions ahead of rallies planned this weekend in the lead-up to Oct. 1 celebrations of China's National Day is unlikely to succeed.