Three organizers of Tiananmen memorial events sentenced to prison in Hong Kong
A court in Hong Kong (China) sentenced three activists who for years organized memorial events commemorating the suppression of protests in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square in 1989 to prison terms ranging from five to more than seven years. CBC World reports this.
Prison terms
Lee Cheuk-yan and Chow Hang-tung, who did not plead guilty, received prison sentences of seven years and seven years and three months, respectively. Albert Ho was sentenced to five years and two months in prison. He received a shorter term, in particular because he pleaded guilty.
Earlier this year, all three were found guilty of incitement to subversion under the national security law introduced by Beijing. They were charged in September 2021, after which the activists spent years in custody.
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Memorial events and political context
For three decades, the annual memorial event in Hong Kong was the only large-scale public commemoration in China of the events in Tiananmen Square. Each year, it drew tens of thousands of participants and symbolized the civil liberties Hong Kong enjoyed after the former British colony was transferred to China in 1997 under the “one country, two systems” principle.
After the 2019 protest movement, authorities narrowed voters’ opportunities and began prosecuting media leaders known for materials critical of the government. Many leading activists were imprisoned under the national security law, while dozens of civic organizations, including the alliance, ceased operations. Beijing says the law is necessary to maintain stability.
The sentences handed down to the three activists became another high-profile punishment under the national security law. In February, former media tycoon and democracy supporter Jimmy Lai was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
