Forty-five prominent Hong Kong pro-democracy activists face sentencing Tuesday in the largest case under Beijing’s national security law, potentially marking the final chapter in China’s systematic dismantling of the city’s democratic opposition.
The activists, convicted of conspiracy to commit subversion, face up to life imprisonment for their roles in organizing a 2020 unofficial primary election that drew over 610,000 voters. Prosecutors argued the primary was part of a plot to force the resignation of Hong Kong’s leader through indiscriminate budget vetoing after gaining a legislative majority.
Among those awaiting sentencing is Benny Tai, a former law professor who helped organize the primary. Once respected enough to serve on the committee drafting Hong Kong’s mini-constitution, Tai now stands convicted of attempting to “undermine, destroy or overthrow the existing political system,” according to the court’s ruling.
Joshua Wong, who gained international recognition during the 2014 Occupy Movement and 2019 protests, faces sentencing after pleading guilty. His lawyer indicated hopes for rehabilitation, saying Wong wishes to “part with his history and would be able to reform himself.”
Former Democratic Party chair Wu Chi-wai, once honored by the government for community service, also awaits sentencing after entering a guilty plea. During his detention, Wu was permitted only brief attendance at his parents’ funerals.
The case has drawn particular attention to Gordon Ng, an Australian-Hong Kong dual citizen who maintains his innocence. Though judges acknowledged he neither organized the primary nor ran as a candidate, they convicted him based on his social media campaign supporting primary winners.
Thirty-one activists entered guilty pleas while fourteen others were found guilty at trial in May. Two were acquitted. Those who pleaded guilty may receive lighter sentences, while others have remained defiant despite their convictions.
The mass sentencing represents a watershed moment in Beijing’s crackdown on Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement, effectively silencing most prominent opposition voices through what critics describe as weaponized legal proceedings. The national security law, imposed in 2020, has fundamentally altered the political landscape of the former British colony that was promised significant autonomy until 2047.
Government-approved judges ruled the primary election plan would have created a constitutional crisis, though defenders argue it represented legitimate political opposition within Hong Kong’s mini-constitution, known as the Basic Law.
