On Tuesday, November 19, the Hong Kong justice system sentenced the 45 pro-democracy activists found guilty of “subversion” after the largest national security trial.
Lawyer Benny Tai was sentenced to ten years in prison, the longest sentence imposed to date under the 2020 national security law, enacted a year after massive and sometimes violent pro-democracy protests in this administrative region (SAR) of China.
All of the activists were found guilty of organizing an unofficial primary aimed at selecting opposition candidates for legislative elections, hoping to gain a majority in the local assembly, veto budgets and potentially force the resignation of the then pro-Beijing leader of Hong Kong, Carrie Lam.
Despite warnings from authorities, 610,000 people voted in the primaries, almost a seventh of Hong Kong’s voting-age population. Authorities eventually gave up on the assembly election, and Beijing established a new political system that tightly controls Hong Kong’s elected officials.
Two of the accused acquitted
Forty-seven people were initially arrested and later charged in 2021. Judges determined that the group would have created a “constitutional crisis” if he had continued with his action, and 45 were found guilty of “Conspiracy to subvert state power”.
Two of the defendants, social worker Lee Yue-shun and academic Lawrence Lau, were acquitted in May after judges said they were not “I’m not sure they intended to subvert”.
Politicians Au Nok-hin, Andrew Chiu, Ben Chung and Australian-Hong Kong activist Gordon Ng, named as “thinking heads”They were sentenced to up to seven years and three months in prison.
Australia declared “seriously concerned” for the conviction of Gordon Ng. “This is a very difficult time for Mr Ng, his family and those who support him”declared Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong, who reiterated her “strong objections” for “the application remains just as broad” of this law encouraged by Beijing.
