For taking part in a 2019 demonstration banned on the 70th anniversary of Communist China, the Hong Kong press magnate Jimmy Lai was sentenced, Friday, May 28, to a new prison term.
Currently in detention for participating in other protests, he was sentenced to 14 months in prison for organizing and participating in the rally on October 1, 2019. He had pleaded guilty.
Jimmy Lai, who is already serving a 14-month sentence, has been in jail since December after being denied bail in a separate national security lawsuit.
Jimmy Lai faces three counts under the new law introduced by China in 2020 in response to the protests, including collusion with a foreign country.
Seven other figures in the pro-democracy movement, including Figo Chan, a 25-year-old activist, and ex-MPs Lee Cheuk-yan and Leung Kwok-hung were also sentenced to new sentences.
Beijing's growing hold over Hong Kong
This wave of condemnations once again illustrates the relentless Chinese repression on the semi-autonomous territory.
In 2019, the international financial center was rocked for several months by huge, often violent, protests against Beijing's growing grip.
On October 1, 2019, National Day in China, radical activists and the police clashed in a particularly violent way on the sidelines of the rally which took place peacefully and in which the activists took part. condemned.
Beijing had seen as a snub the high rate of participation of the population in this rally as the Chinese government celebrated the 70 years of the regime.
"It was naive to believe that a call for peaceful and rational conduct would suffice to ensure the absence of violence," Justice Amanda Woodcock said as she handed down the jail terms for the eight activists.
With AFP and Reuters
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