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More than three years since they were arrested under the national security law, dozens of Hong Kong’s most prominent democrats will be sentenced over their participation in an unofficial primary election in 2020. Most have been detained since being taken into police custody in February 2021 ahead of being charged.
Of the 47 democrats charged with conspiring to commit subversion, 16 pleaded not guilty, with 14 of them convicted after a 118-day non-jury trial. Those found guilty will be sentenced along with the 31 who pleaded guilty.
The case revolves around a primary election in July 2020 that aimed to help the pan-democrats seize a majority in the upcoming Legislative Council (LegCo) elections, which were scheduled for September that year before being postponed on Covid-19 grounds.
Prosecutors said that had they won a majority in the 70-seat chamber, the democrats planned to “indiscriminately” veto bills including the annual budget – forcing the chief executive’s resignation and a government shutdown. A panel of three national security judges ruled the moves would have plunged Hong Kong into a “constitutional crisis.”
The 45 democrats, among them ex-lawmakers, district councillors and student activists, face up to life in jail. Ahead of the landmark sentencing, Hong Kong Free Press rounds up the key dates in the case.
December 10, 2019
Then-University of Hong Kong law professor Benny Tai promoted the idea of winning a controlling majority in the Legislative Council in an op-ed published in pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily. He wrote that with a majority, the democrats could force the government to accede to their demands.
March 26, 2020
Apple Daily published an op-ed by Tai called “Ten steps to real mutual destruction – the inevitable fate of Hong Kong.”
Tai wrote that, according to the city’s mini-constitution, lawmakers could indiscriminately veto the government budget and force a government shutdown. Beijing would then declare a state of emergency, leading to the mass arrests of democrats, violent protests and Western countries sanctioning Beijing.
The op-ed became one of the key documents cited by the prosecution during the trial.
June 9, 2020
Fergus Leung, Sam Cheung and Owen Chow drafted a declaration called “Resolute Resistance, Inked Without Regret.” Signatories agreed to veto the budget to compel the chief executive to respond to the five demands of protesters in 2019.
There were 37 signatories to the declaration, including Nathan Law and Sunny Cheung, who did not eventually take part in the primaries as they had left Hong Kong.
June 30, 2020
Beijing’s national security law took effect in Hong Kong following a year of pro-democracy protests and unrest. The law, which criminalised subversion, secession, collusion with foreign forces and terrorism, bypassed the local legislature.
The government said it was needed to restore stability, while critics expressed concern that the broadly defined law could be used to restrict freedom of expression and crack down on civil society groups.
July 9, 2020
Then-Secretary for Constitutional and Mainland Affairs Erick Tsang said in interviews with pro-Beijing newspapers that the democrats’ election primary may violate the national security law.
July 11 and 12, 2020
Over 610,000 members of the public voted in the two-day primaries, a turnout that Tai hailed as historic. Ex-lawmaker Au Nok-hin, one of the organisers, said the turnout amounted to over 15 per cent of the city’s registered voters.
July 14, 2020
China’s liaison office in Hong Kong said the primaries were “illegal” and a “serious provocation” of the electoral system. Specifically, the office pointed the finger at Tai and also claimed that “foreign forces” had helped to bring about the event.
July 30, 2020
Election authorities disqualified 12 democrats from running in the Legislative Council elections, including nine who had stood in the primaries.
The disqualified democrats were accused of objecting to the security law and soliciting foreign powers, among other things.
July 31, 2020
Then-chief executive Carrie Lam announced the LegCo elections would be postponed, citing the Covid-19 pandemic.
January 6, 2021
National security police arrested 55 people suspected of subversion under the national security law in relation to their involvement in the primaries.
Then-security chief John Lee said the “35-plus” plan and the “10-step mutual destruction scheme” involved a “vicious plot” to paralyse the government.
February 28, 2021
Police charged 47 of the 55 arrested in January with one count of “conspiracy to commit subversion.”
March 1, 2021
The 47 democrats were taken to court for what became a four-day bail hearing. The first day of the hearing, which went on for 14 hours, was only adjourned after one of the defendants – Clarisse Yeung – collapsed at around 1 am.
By the end of the fourth day, most of the defendants had been denied bail on national security grounds. Among those granted bail, none were able to walk out of court on March 4 after the Department of Justice immediately filed a bail review.
July 6, 2022
The case was transferred from magistrates’ court to the High Court, where the democrats faced higher penalties of up to life imprisonment.
August 16, 2022
Secretary for Justice Paul Lam ordered the trial to be heard by a panel of three judges handpicked by the government to preside over national security cases, rather than a jury. The arrangement is allowed under Beijing’s security law but marks a departure from the city’s common law tradition.
August 18, 2022
A magistrate lifted court reporting restrictions on hearings related to the transfer of the case from magistrates’ court to High Court that had previously meant journalists could only publish limited information. Interactions between judges, defendants and lawyers, for example, were earlier unable to be reported.
November 9, 2022
A trial date was finally set, more than a year and a half since most of the democrats were remanded in custody, with the Judiciary announcing it would begin on January 30, 2023.
January 17, 2023
The trial date was pushed back by one week to early February.
February 6, 2023
People queued overnight for tickets to watch the opening day of the trial from the public gallery, with speculation some had been paid to secure seats so supporters of the democrats would be excluded.
The trial began with 16 defendants pleading not guilty, and 31 pleading guilty. The prosecution said four of the accused – ex-lawmaker Au Nok-hin, ex-district councillors Andrew Chiu and Ben Chung, and entrepreneur Mike Lam – would testify against their co-defendants.
December 4, 2023
After 118 days in the courtroom, the trial ended as the defence and prosecution wrapped up closing statements. Judge Andrew Chan said there were “no guarantees” when the verdict would be delivered as judge Alex Lee would also be presiding over the national security trial of detained media mogul Jimmy Lai.
May 7, 2024
The Judiciary scheduled the verdict for May 30 and 31.
May 30, 2024
Fourteen of the 16 defendants who pleaded not guilty were convicted of taking part in a conspiracy to subvert state power. Ex-district councillor Lee Yue-shun and barrister Lawrence Lau were cleared of the charge.
The prosecution announced immediately that it would challenge the two acquittals.
June 13, 2024
The Department of Justice said it would not proceed with its appeal of Lee’s acquittal.
June 25, 2024
Mitigation hearings began in late June and continued until early September. Ex-district councillor Ng Kin-wai and activist Ventus Lau personally addressed the court, while the barrister representing ex-journalist Gwyneth Ho said she had no mitigation statement.
October 24, 2024
The sentencing was scheduled for November 19, by which time most of the defendants will have already spent over three and a half years behind bars.
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