Hong Kong democracy leaders convicted under subversion law

Two former leaders of a group that organised Hong Kong’s annual candlelight vigil commemorating the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre have been convicted of inciting subversion against China’s government, mbl.is reports, citing the Associated Press.

Lee Cheuk-yan and Chow Hang-tung both held leadership positions in the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China. They were charged in 2021 under the controversial national security law imposed on Hong Kong by the Chinese authorities.

Judges appointed by the Chinese Communist Party ruled that the alliance’s call for an “end to one-party rule” amounted to an unlawful incitement to overthrow the Communist Party leadership, rather than merely a demand for democratic reform.

Both defendants denied the charges and face up to 10 years in prison.

Candlelight vigil banned in 2020

The case is seen as another example of how Hong Kong’s once-powerful democracy movement has been almost dismantled since the national security law came into force in 2020.

For more than three decades, tens of thousands of people attended the annual memorial. It was the only commemoration of the Tiananmen Square massacre permitted in Chinese-controlled territory. On mainland China, any mention of the events remains completely banned.

Authorities first banned the candlelight vigil in 2020, citing measures to contain the Covid-19 pandemic. It has not been permitted since. The location where it was previously held is now used for celebrations organised by groups supportive of the Communist Party government.

The charge of subversion, used against Lee and Chow, has long been used in mainland China to silence human rights lawyers, activists and intellectuals. Those targeted have included Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo, who died while serving an 11-year prison sentence.

Hundreds of people have been arrested under the national security laws since 2020, including activists, former lawmakers and journalists. They include 78-year-old media mogul Jimmy Lai, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison earlier this year.

Media outlets that openly supported democratic reforms have been forcibly closed, voting rights have been significantly curtailed and the number of political parties supporting reform has fallen sharply. Many have been dissolved under government pressure.

Hong Kong’s autonomy curtailed

Next year will mark 30 years since Britain handed control of Hong Kong to China. Before the handover, the city had been part of the British Empire for 156 years.

The transfer was based on agreements under which China promised to preserve Hong Kong’s system of government for 50 years, including its free economy, free legislative elections, freedom of speech, freedom of assembly and independent judiciary.

The arrangement, known as “one country, two systems”, was based on a 1984 agreement between Britain and China and was intended to guarantee Hong Kong broad autonomy. In practice, the situation developed differently, as China’s authoritarian authorities have steadily restricted that autonomy.