Hong Kong convicts 14 activists in city’s largest national security trial

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A Hong Kong court has convicted 14 activists in the territory’s largest national security trial, which has been closely watched as an indicator for freedoms in the city as authorities seek to stamp out political dissent.

The case, which was brought against 47 of the territory’s most prominent political activists, concluded on Thursday with 14 of the defendants found guilty of conspiracy to commit subversion, including former lawmaker Leung Kwok-hung, union leader Winnie Yu and former journalist Gwyneth Ho. They face sentences of up to life in prison.

Two others who pleaded not guilty were acquitted by a panel of three judges from a government-vetted list to handle national security cases. The prosecution said it intended to appeal against the two acquittals.

“Please continue to pay attention to the others in the case,” said barrister Lawrence Lau, one of the acquitted defendants, outside the court following the verdict on Thursday.

The remaining 31 defendants, including legal scholar Benny Tai, student activist Joshua Wong and former lawmaker Claudia Mo, pleaded guilty and will be sentenced at a later date.

Most of the 47 defendants have been detained for more than three years after being denied bail. They span the city’s opposition camp, including politicians and former lawmakers, social workers, civil society leaders and journalists.

The verdict comes as Hong Kong is attempting to revive its reputation as a global financial centre and woo back foreign businesses that fled in the wake of pandemic restrictions and a political crackdown by Beijing and local authorities after pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Thomas Kellogg, executive director of Georgetown University’s Center for Asian Law, said the court was “poised to put many of the top figures in Hong Kong’s pan-democratic camp behind bars”, predicting sentences that could be “some of the heaviest sentences yet handed down under the national security law”.

“We’re in uncharted territory here,” he said. “There simply hasn’t been a case like this one since the national security law went into effect close to four years ago.”

The prosecution accused the 47 defendants of attempting to use an unofficial primary election in 2020 to paralyse the city’s government by winning control of the legislature, which would allow the opposition to block budgets or public spending.

More than 600,000 Hongkongers cast ballots, making the vote one of the largest informal exercises of democracy in the city, and came less than two weeks after Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law. The election for the Legislative Council, which was ultimately held without opposition participation under Beijing’s new “patriots-only” rules for candidates, was marred by low turnout.

“The court [came] to the view that the scheme, if carried out in accordance with the intentions of the parties as alleged, would necessarily amount to . . . undermining the performance of duties and functions in accordance with the law by the government of the HKSAR [Hong Kong Special Administrative Region],” the judges said.

The trial has further inflamed tensions between Beijing and the west. The US, UK and EU had previously denounced the charges.

Prominent Beijing critic and former media mogul Jimmy Lai is standing trial in a separate national security case in which he faces up to life in prison on charges of collusion with foreign forces and conspiring to publish seditious material.

His sentencing, as well as that of the 47 activists, would cement Beijing’s effort to wipe out dissent in the territory, analysts said.

About 50 people queued outside the courthouse as early as 5.30am for seats in the public gallery. SL Chiu, 35, who was among the first in the queue, called the trial “a watershed moment” for Hong Kong.

“The 47 of them will be remembered in history,” he said, adding that he wanted the defendants to know that “we haven’t given up, we are still here with you”.