A Hong Kong court on Friday sentenced three activists who organized peaceful candlelight vigils in memory of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre with prison sentences of up to seven years.
The three activists — Lee Cheuk-yan, Chow Hang-tung, and Albert Ho — were the leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, a pro-democracy organization that held yearly candlelight vigils to remember victims of the June 4, 1989, Tiananmen Square massacre. The peaceful practice was maintained for decades until the Chinese communist regime banned the activity in 2020, using the Wuhan coronavirus pandemic as an excuse.
The Chinese also took advantage of the tyrannical “National Security Law (NSL),” which was used to crush that year’s pro-democracy protests, to outlaw the vigils. The activists were arrested a year later, in 2021, with the Chinese regime forcefully disbanding the pro-democracy group. For years, the Chinese regime accused the group of trying to “overthrow the leadership of the Communist Party of China.”
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Lee, a 69-year-old former lawmaker, and Chow, a 41-year-old lawyer, were convicted on spurious “incitement to subversion” charges in August in a trial widely condemned as a sham. The third activist, 74-year-old former lawmaker Albert Ho, pleaded guilty to the charges when the trial started earlier this year.
The Hong Kong Free Press reported that the three activists appeared before the court on Friday morning to hear their sentences. Lee received a seven-year prison sentence while Chow received a seven-year, three-month sentence. Ho, who pleaded guilty, received a five-year, two-month sentence.
Although the Chinese regime forced its disbandment, the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China was imposed a 1.5 million Hong Kong dollars (roughly $191,000) fine that must be paid to Hong Kong authorities within the next three months.
Despite the harsh sentencing, Friday’s court ruling reportedly states the present case did not involve violence or the threat of violence, “nor had the defendant put forward any specific means of implementation or timetable” to end the one-party rule in China. The court, however, said the alleged offense committed by the activists was of a “serious nature.”
Furthermore, the court argued the three activists possessed a “certain degree of mobilizing power and influence” that reached all of Hong Kong.
“Despite the defendants’ beliefs that their agenda might be in breach of the constitution and the NSL they recalcitrantly pursued their course of conduct which was premeditated,” the court reportedly stated.
According to the BBC, Lee and Chow “stood up and smiled” at the start of the sentence hearing session, while Ho maintained a serious expression. After the sentences were handed out, Lee reportedly appeared to pray as he was led out, while Chow blew a kiss to those seated at the public gallery.
Speaking to reporters at a Friday press conference, Hong Kong Police Senior Superintendent Steve Li praised the sentences imposed upon the three activists and affirmed that “it can be seen that they are responsible for extremely serious offenses.”
“It was to be expected that Chow Hang-tung, who showed no remorse and was obstinate to the end, received the heaviest sentence,” Li reportedly said.
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“We can see from the trial that vigils can be used for the purposes of incitement,” the superintendent stressed, answering a reporter who asked if commemorating the Tiananmen massacre was a violation of the law. “Organizers must be very wary. If public assemblies or marches are involved, the police will be watching closely.”
Lee Cheuk-yan’s wife, Elizabeth Tang, spoke with Reuters on Friday and stressed, “It’s a sad day for me as his wife. I cannot imagine that he has to spend another three years in jail, it is really unacceptable.”
Chow’s mother, Medina Chow, thanked supporters of the activists gathered outside the courthouse on Friday for standing with the convicted activists. Per Reuters, she said, “For today’s verdict, you do not need to be overly saddened. Do not lose heart. And above all, do not feel guilty.”
In August, U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights and Labor Riley Barnes condemned the guilty verdicts against the activists and called for their immediate release.
“The United States condemns the Hong Kong Court’s guilty verdict of the former leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance and calls for their immediate release,” Barnes said at the time.
“Their peaceful Tiananmen Square Massacre vigils sought only to remember the past and honor the lives lost in that assault,” he continued.