Pro-democracy icons sentenced to decades in jail

A Hong Kong court sentenced key pro-democracy figures to up to 10 years in jail for subversion, following a controversial national security trial.

Benny Tai and Joshua Wong, prominent faces of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement, were among the so-called Hong Kong 47 group to be sentenced. Tai received 10 years while Wong received more than four years, for their roles in a plan to pick opposition candidates for local elections.

A total of 47 activists, opposition lawmakers and ordinary persons organised or took part in the plan. Most of them were found guilty of conspiring to attempt subversion, while two were acquitted.

Their trial marked the largest use of the harsh national security law which China imposed on Hong Kong shortly after the city’s explosive pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Observers say it significantly weakens the city’s pro-democracy movement and rule of law, and allow China to cement control of the city. The US has described the trial as “politically motivated”.

Beijing and Hong Kong’s governments argue that the law is necessary to maintain stability and deny it has weakened autonomy. They also say the convictions serve as a warning against forces trying to undermine China’s national security.

The case has attracted huge interest from Hongkongers, dozens of whom queued up outside of the court days earlier to secure a spot in the public gallery.

Other prominent pro-democracy figures sentenced on Tuesday include Gwyneth Ho, a former journalist who went into politics, and former lawmakers Claudia Mo and Leung Kwok-hung. They received sentences between four to seven years in prison.

In 2020, hundreds of thousands of Hongkongers voted in an unofficial primary for the Legislative Council election. It was organised by pro-democracy activists to increase the opposition’s chances of blocking the pro-Beijing government’s bills.

The activists argued that their actions were legal. But officials accused the activists of attempting to “overthrow” the government, and judges in their ruling agreed with the prosecution’s argument that the plan would have created a constitutional crisis.