China News Agency, Hong Kong, April 24. A 21-year-old man in Hong Kong was sentenced to a 200-hour social service order for insulting the national flag in 2019. The Department of Justice of the Hong Kong SAR Government applied for a sentence review. On the 24th, the Court of Appeal of the Hong Kong High Court stated that the defendant in the case had insulted the national flag and was sentenced to 20 days in prison. This is the first conviction for insulting the national flag since the revision of the law in Hong Kong.
It is reported that the defendant admitted in the court earlier that he had publicly and deliberately insulted the national flag in the areas of Sha Tin New Town Plaza and Sha Tin Town Hall on September 22, 2019 by means of damage, scribbling, tarnishing, trampling, etc.
When applying for an appeal, the Department of Justice of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government stated that the trial magistrate underestimated the seriousness of the case at the time of sentencing and did not consider that the sentence must be deterrent. It is medium to high and should be sentenced to imprisonment.
The judge of the Hong Kong High Court said in the ruling that the defendant insulted the national flag with bad behavior and seriously degraded the dignity of the country represented by the flag. The defendant insulted the national flag in various ways in the crowded area at that time. Due to the seriousness of the case, immediate imprisonment was the only option. (Finish)