Hong Kong Activist Joshua Wong Sentenced to 13.5 Months in Jail

Prominent Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong and two of his longtime colleagues were handed jail sentences on Nov. 2, for their roles in a mass protest that occurred in front of the city’s police headquarters in June last year.

The sentencing—the toughest since a mass movement against Beijing's rule was ignited last year—drew immediate global condemnation against the Hong Kong government and Chinese regime.

After the sentence was read, Wong, wearing a black sweater and surgical face mask, shouted, "I know the coming days will be tougher. We will hang in there."

All three pleaded guilty to the charge of “inciting others to take part in the unauthorized assembly” on June 21, 2019. Wong also pleaded guilty to a separate charge of “organizing an unauthorized assembly,” while Chow also pleaded guilty to “taking part in an unauthorized assembly.”

On June 21 last year, thousands of protesters besieged the police headquarters in Wan Chai district, blocking nearby roads and entrances into the building. They gathered to oppose an extradition bill that would have allowed people in Hong Kong to be sent to mainland China for trial. The extradition bill has since been scrapped.

For the charge of organizing an unlawful assembly, Wang was handed 15 months imprisonment. Meanwhile, Chow was sentenced to 12 months for taking part in the protest. The court ultimately gave Wong and Chow reduced sentences because they pleaded guilty, the ruling stated, adding that it would be “inappropriate” to suspend the three defendants’ sentences.

“As the present case involves a breach of public order and safety, as well as a threat to the personal safety of the public, deterrent sentences are warranted to safeguard public interests and the lives and property of the people … Immediate imprisonment is the only appropriate sentencing option,” the court ruling stated.

Many supporters showed up outside the courthouse on Wednesday to encourage the three activists. Some chanted slogans such as “add oil,” which means “keep it up” in Chinese. Several held up papers with words such as “Free Agnes Chow.” Many held up five fingers in one hand and one finger in the other, a gesture referring to a popular protester slogan, “five demands, not one less,” in calling for greater democratic freedoms in the former British colony.

The Inter-Parliamentary Alliance on China (IPAC), a global coalition of lawmakers, called for urgent action to hold Beijing accountable.

IPAC added that the sentencing “has made a mockery of the rule of law in the city" and demonstrated the Chinese regime's erosion of freedoms that were guaranteed in the city's mini-constitution, Hong Kong Basic Law, and Sino-British Joint Declaration.

The Chinese regime and the United Kingdom signed the treaty in 1984 to pave the way for the territory’s transfer of sovereignty to China in 1997.

Under the treaty, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) had pledged that for at least 50 years after 1997, Hongkongers would enjoy autonomy and freedoms not granted to those in mainland China under the governance model of “one country, two systems.”

“Beijing and Carrie Lam are using the court to make an example of Wong, 24, Chow, 23, Lam, 26, to send a message: Obey or spend the best part of your youth behind bars,” Chu stated.

He added: “The CCP is ready and willing to maintain control and power at all costs, even if it means imprisoning and wiping out a whole generation of Hong Kongers.”

Chu also questioned Hong Kong’s judicial system. He stated: “Hong Kong’s courts are now clearly under Beijing’s constant pressure and threats to pursue and deliver politically motivated rulings.”