Li Zhiying's confession is repentance? Expert: Not so, sentencing should fully consider its long-term harm to national security
[Global Times-Global Times Reporter Bai Yunyi, Cui Fandi, Chen Qingqing] Anti-China and Hong Kong activist Li Zhiying accused of "knowingly participating in an unauthorized assembly" on August 31, 2019 was tried in the Hong Kong District Court on the 7th, Li Zhiying admitted Charged.
A number of legal professionals in Hong Kong told the Global Times reporter on the 7th that this is Li Zhiying's first plea after the promulgation of the Hong Kong National Security Law, but this does not mean that Li Zhiying has shown a remorse attitude.
In the future trials of Li Zhiying's case involving Hong Kong's national security law, the long-term harm to Hong Kong's constitutional order and national security interests should be fully considered when sentencing.
According to reports from Hong Kong’s “Dongwang” and other media, there are three defendants in the trial today, namely Li Zhiying, founder of Next Media Group, Yang Sen, former chairman of the Hong Kong Democratic Party, and Li Zhuoren, chairman of the stake. They were charged in August 2019. Participating in an unauthorized assembly between Wanchai and Central on the 31st violated Section 17A of the Public Security Ordinance, Chapter 245 of the Laws of Hong Kong.
The case opened in Wan Chai District Court this morning, and the trial is expected to take 7 days.
According to "Dongwang", Li Zhiying, Li Zhuoren, and Yang Sen pleaded guilty and agreed to the case immediately after the trial.
Several videos played in the court of the prosecution showed that the police had given a verbal warning at that time that the assembly was unauthorized and that the participants had a chance to be criminally prosecuted.
According to the report, in addition to this case and the "8.18 illegal assembly case" that has been convicted, Li Zhiying still has two cases involving illegal assembly awaiting trial.
Hong Kong High Court lawyer Huang Yinghao analyzed to a reporter from the Global Times that the main reason for Li Zhiying's plea is that this case is very similar to the "8.18 illegal assembly case" heard last week, and the judge who tried it was also the same.
Li Zhiying and his legal team believe that the prosecution already has comprehensive evidence, and the trial process will be very similar, that is, they will definitely be convicted.
Therefore, it is better for him to choose to confess his guilt in advance.
He said that the act of confessing guilt does not mean that Li Zhiying has repented of what he had done before, or that his attitude has changed.
“Participating in an illegal assembly is a relatively light offense and will not be sentenced to a long sentence. The prosecution has sufficient evidence against him, so Li Zhiying will choose to plead guilty.” Huang Yinghao believes, “Later, he will face issues involving the National Security Law. It is almost impossible for him to plead guilty for serious charges."
According to Hong Kong law, the maximum penalty for the crime of illegal assembly is 5 years imprisonment.
Wu Yingpeng, secretary-general of the Hong Kong Basic Law Education Association and practicing barrister, told the Global Times that traditionally, if the defendant pleads guilty before trial, the starting point of sentencing is generally deducted by one-third, although the Court of Appeal later adjusted this Principles, but commutation is still an important inducement to plead guilty.
Many defendants pleaded guilty in order to obtain a commutation of their sentence because the prosecution’s evidence was too strong or they did not have a reason for defense. However, it is not known whether they have sincerely repented.
He said that judges have overriding discretion in terms of the magnitude of the commutation, and the court should not grant excessive sentence deductions for defendants who waste judicial resources and have no choice but to plead guilty until the end.
According to previous media reports, Li Zhiying's case involving the National Security Law will be retrial on the 16th of this month.
Tian Feilong, executive director of Beijing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics’ "One Country, Two Systems" Legal Research Center, told the Global Times reporter that one of the purposes of Li Zhiying’s "strategic confession" was to win public opinion and the sympathy of judges in order to fight for national security in this case. In the trial of the law case, he gained public opinion in and outside the court in favor of him, and then strived for a lighter sentence.
However, Tian Feilong said that in the trial of cases involving national security law, the court should take into account that Li Zhiying still has room for continuing to challenge the constitutional order of the SAR and "one country, two systems" when sentencing.
He explained that Li Zhiying is the general agent of local extremist forces and external intervention forces in Hong Kong. It is a role that external forces have sought, cultivated and precipitated for a long time. It is difficult for others to replace in the short term, and Li Zhiying himself may still be different. Way to continue to engage in the so-called "political protest movement."
Therefore, the next trial of Li Zhiying's national security law case requires a comprehensive assessment of Lebanon’s long-term harm to Hong Kong’s constitutional order and national security interests, and corresponding penalties to ensure that he can no longer have sovereignty over Hong Kong in the future. Safety is a hazard.