Hong Kong Court Jails Three Tiananmen Vigil Activists for Five to Seven Years

HONG KONG — A Hong Kong court sentenced three veteran activists who helped lead the city's annual Tiananmen Square vigil to prison terms of five to seven years on Friday, in a national security case that has intensified international criticism of the city's legal crackdown.

Lee Cheuk-yan, 69, Albert Ho, 74, and Chow Hang-tung, 41, have been detained since they were charged in 2021. Their sentences are expected to account for time already served.

The three were convicted under the national security law Beijing imposed on Hong Kong in 2020, after large pro-democracy protests. The United Nations, human rights organizations, and several foreign governments have condemned their convictions.

In August, the court ruled that the activists had breached China's constitution by calling for an "end to one-party dictatorship." The case centered on their roles in the now-defunct Hong Kong Alliance, which for decades organized the city's June 4 commemorations.

Lee and Chow, who pleaded not guilty, received seven years and seven years and three months respectively. Ho, a former lawmaker who pleaded guilty in January, was sentenced to five years and two months.

The verdict acknowledged that the case did not involve violence and that the defendants had not set out a specific timetable for carrying out an "end to one-party dictatorship." It still described the offense as of "a serious nature."

Chow, a barrister who represented herself, told a hearing last month that she had "nothing to repent for." As officers escorted her from court, she raised both arms and waved to supporters.

Outside the courthouse, supporters hugged her mother, Medina Chow Lau Wah-chun, who said her daughter had remained in high spirits during the trial.

"She is not a competent barrister. She is simply an outstanding defendant," her mother said.

Lee crossed himself, smiled, and bowed to his wife, Elizabeth Tang Yin-ngor, and supporters, including Cardinal Joseph Zen. The two held each other's hands after leaving the courtroom.

"I'm really sad, and very angry," Tang told reporters, adding that Lee would "definitely appeal."

Dozens of police officers surrounded the court and set up cordons to hold back crowds.

Afraid of memory

Hong Kong and Macau were once the only places on Chinese soil where public mourning was permitted for those killed on June 4, 1989, when Beijing sent troops and tanks to crush protests calling for political reform around Tiananmen Square in the capital. In recent years, however, public commemoration has been effectively banned in both cities.

The three defendants were leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance, the group that organized annual vigils in Victoria Park. The organization has since disbanded.

Hong Kong leader John Lee said in a statement that "the law will never allow anyone to use the pretext of human rights, democracy and freedom to blatantly harm their own country and compatriots."

National security police chief Steve Li told reporters the sentences were "a stern warning to those who may be contemplating similar acts."

The ruling drew condemnation from officials in Taiwan, which China regards as its own territory, as well as from rights groups.

"The pursuit of democracy and human rights is not a crime," Taiwan's top China policy body said, adding that authorities had "fabricated charges and conducted political trials in the name of national security to shield an authoritarian regime."

Elaine Pearson, Asia director at Human Rights Watch, said the "harsh sentences" exposed "the cruelty and insecurity of a government afraid of memory and the people."

Amnesty International's deputy regional director, Sarah Brooks, said the sentencing "illustrates just how much Hong Kong has been transformed in the name of 'national security.'"

The Hong Kong Alliance also ran a museum dedicated to the crackdown and held events including an annual washing of the "Pillar of Shame," a statue memorializing the victims.

The statue was removed from its long-time plinth at the University of Hong Kong in 2021. Other local universities later removed similar objects.

Prosecutors argued that evidence in the case, including the statue and archives from the alliance's museum, should be confiscated. Judge Alex Lee said Friday that the statue's fate would be decided after a ruling on its ownership.

Jens Galschiot, the Danish artist behind the "Pillar of Shame," called the trial's outcome and the statue's possible confiscation "outrageous."

The sculpture tells the story of Tiananmen, Galschiot told AFP. He has spent years trying to reclaim his work. If it is destroyed, he said, that would also "destroy the story that everybody should know."

The case is the latest sign of how the national security law has reshaped Hong Kong's civic life. Once known for its mass vigils and robust civil society, the city has seen independent groups close, activists jailed, and commemorative events barred. Supporters of the defendants say their advocacy was peaceful; authorities say the law is necessary to protect stability and enforce Beijing's sovereignty over the territory.

The sentences are likely to deepen concerns among Western governments and rights advocates about Hong Kong's autonomy under the "one country, two systems" framework, which is set to govern the city until 2047. They also underscore the growing pressure on Hong Kong's courts, which have handled a series of high-profile national security cases since the law took effect.