HONG KONG – Forty-five former members and activists were sentenced to four to 10 years in prison on Tuesday in Hong Kong’s biggest national security trial under a Beijing-imposed law that has crushed the once-thriving democracy movement.
They are being tried under the national security law of 2020 for their role in the illegal primary election. Prosecutors said their aim was to paralyze the Hong Kong government and force the city’s leader to resign in order to gain a legal majority and use it to block the government’s budget indiscriminately.
Legal scholar Benny Tai, who was widely regarded as the organizer of the illegal primary school, received the longest sentence of 10 years. The judges said that the sentences were reduced for the defendants who said that they did not know that the plan to get a majority in the Legislature and the suspension of the state is against the law.
However, the court said that the fines were not reduced for Tai and former lawyer Alvin Yeung, as they were lawyers who were “consistent in enforcing the implementation of the Scheme.”
In a judgment posted online, the judges wrote that Tai actually “represented a revolution” by publishing a series of articles during the months following his reasoning, although in his letter of mitigation Tai said the measures “were not intended to be used as a blueprint for any political actions.”
Two of the original 47 defendants were released earlier this year. Others pleaded guilty or were found guilty of plotting a coup. The judges pointed out that in this decision the plans of the activists to make a change by using this illegal group will be undermining the authority of the government and creating a constitutional dispute.
The judges rejected the arguments of the other defendants that the scheme could not have happened, saying that “all the participants made every effort to make it successful.”
In the judgment, the judges highlighted that a lot of time, resources and money had been put into organizing the first election.
“During the Youth Election on 10 and 11 July, no one ever said that the Youth Election was not just a study program and that the Strategy was not accessible at all,” reads the decision. “For it to be successful, the organizers and participants may have obstacles to overcome, however this was expected in all coup cases where attempts are made to overthrow or paralyze the government.”
Some of the defendants waved to their relatives in court after the sentencing.
Chan Po-ying, the wife of defendant Leung Kwok-hung, told the media that she was not shocked when she heard that her husband received a sentence of six years and nine months. He said they are trying to use other rights given to them by the constitution of the city to pressure those in power to face the will of the people.
“This is an unjust arrest. They should not be kept in jail for one day,” said Chan, who is also the chairman of the League of Social Democrats, one of the remaining pro-democracy groups in the city.
Emilia Wong, Ventus Lau’s girlfriend, felt calm because Lau’s sentence was in line with her expectations. Wong said the sentence is an “intermediate phase” of history and he does not see an end in sight yet, but promised to support Lau as much as possible.
Philip Bowring, Claudia Mo’s husband, was relieved that the sentences had finally been handed down.
Observers said the case shows how authorities have suppressed dissent following massive anti-government protests in 2019, as well as harassing the media and reducing public choice in elections. The drastic changes show how Beijing’s pledge to preserve the former British state’s independence for 50 years when it returned to China in 1997 is becoming more tenuous, they said.
Read more: ‘We’re at the Point of No Return’: How a Series of Protests Escalated into an All-Out Battle for Hong Kong’s Soul
The governments of Beijing and Hong Kong have insisted that national security legislation is necessary for the city’s stability.
The sentence has drawn criticism from foreign governments and human rights organizations around the world.
The US ambassador to Hong Kong said the US strongly condemned the sentences against 45 pro-democracy lawyers and former legislators.
“The defendants were severely prosecuted and imprisoned for peacefully participating in ordinary political activities protected under Hong Kong’s Basic Law,” the statement said. “We ask (Beijing) and the Hong Kong authorities to stop the politically-related persecution of Hong Kong citizens and immediately release all political prisoners and people detained for peacefully fighting for rights and freedom.”
Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said her government was “deeply concerned” by the sentencing of Australian citizen Gordon Ng and other activists. Wong said Australia expressed strong opposition to the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities’ continued broad application of national security law.
The coup involved pro-democracy activists across the spectrum. They included Tai, former student leader Joshua Wong and former law enforcement officers. Most of them have already been in prison for more than three and a half years before being sentenced. The separation hurt them and their families.
More than 200 people lined up in the rain and wind Tuesday morning to sit in court, including one of the defendants, Lee Yue-shun. Lee said he hopes that members of the public will show that they care about the development of the court case.
“The interpretation and understanding of society has a great impact on the development of our society in the future,” he said.
A fan in the area known as “Grandpa Wong,” who did not know the English spelling of his name, said he wanted to see the convicted activists again. He is about 100 years old and he is afraid that he will not be able to see them when they get out of prison.
Wei Siu-lik, a friend of convicted activist Clarisse Yeung, said he arrived at 4 am even though his leg was injured. “I wanted to let them know that there are still many who come here for them,” he said.
Thirty-one activists pleaded guilty and had better chances of receiving reduced sentences. The law allows for a range of sentences depending on the seriousness of the crime and the defendant’s role in it, from less than three years for the most serious to 10 to life in prison for people convicted of “serious” crimes.
An unofficial primary held in July 2020 drew 610,000 voters, and the winners would advance to the official election. Authorities have canceled official legislative elections, however, citing public health risks during the COVID-19 crisis.
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