Hong Kong Tiananmen Activists Found Guilty in National Security Case

A Hong Kong court has convicted two pro-democracy activists, Lee Cheuk-yan, 69, and Chow Hang-tung, 41, of “incitement to subversion” under the city’s national security law.

The two former leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China were prosecuted over their involvement in organising annual candlelight vigils commemorating the victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown in Beijing. They pleaded not guilty to the charges, which were brought in 2021.

The activists could face up to 10 years in prison, with sentencing expected at a later date.

Prosecutors argued that their activities endangered national security, while supporters and rights groups accused Hong Kong authorities of suppressing freedom of expression and political dissent.

The annual Tiananmen vigil had been held for about three decades and attracted tens of thousands of people each year. Authorities banned the gathering in 2020, shortly before Beijing imposed a sweeping national security law on Hong Kong following the city's large pro-democracy protests in 2019.

Human Rights Watch said the case demonstrated the Hong Kong government's continuing efforts to erase public discussion of the Tiananmen crackdown.

The convictions are part of a wider crackdown on Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement. Earlier this year, prominent media tycoon and rights campaigner Jimmy Lai was convicted on national security charges and sentenced to 20 years in prison.

The 1989 Tiananmen crackdown remains heavily censored in mainland China. Chinese authorities sent troops and tanks into central Beijing to suppress a pro-democracy movement, killing hundreds and possibly thousands of people.

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