Hong Kong court records or official announcements

'Hong Kong 47' Activists Sentenced Up to 10 Years; Benny Tai Gets Longest Term

Nov 19, 2024, 03:20 AM

On Tuesday, a Hong Kong court sentenced 45 pro-democracy activists, known collectively as the 'Hong Kong 47', to prison terms ranging from 50 months to 10 years in the city's largest national security trial to date. Legal scholar Benny Tai, considered the 'ringleader' behind the movement, received the longest sentence of 10 years. Activist Joshua Wong was sentenced to four years and six months. The defendants were convicted of conspiracy to subvert state power under the Beijing-imposed National Security Law for organizing and participating in an unofficial primary election in July 2020, in which 610,000 Hong Kong residents voted to select pro-democracy candidates for the Legislative Council elections. The court ruled that their plan to secure a majority in the legislature and veto bills indiscriminately would have plunged Hong Kong into a 'constitutional crisis'. Many of those sentenced had already been detained for over 1,300 days prior to the court's decision. The total sentences amount to 245 years. The sentencing has drawn international condemnation from Western governments and human rights organizations, raising concerns over the erosion of democratic freedoms in Hong Kong. Two of the 47 were acquitted earlier.