Hong Kong court convicts three Tiananmen vigil organizers

Three Hong Kong activists who organized annual vigils in remembrance of China’s 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown received sentences Friday ranging from five to seven years in prison, signaling what human rights activists are calling an erosion of the city’s freedoms.

Lee Cheuk-yan, Chow Hang-tung, and Albert Ho were convicted of inciting subversion under Hong Kong’s Beijing-imposed national security law, enacted in 2020. The court ruled that their vigil caused what the court characterized as an unsettled social atmosphere, which the court said put national security and public order at risk. The three were leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China. For 30 years, this vigil was the only large-scale, public commemoration of the Tiananmen Square bloodshed.

What was the vigil for? The vigil marked the 30th anniversary of the bloody suppression of protests in China’s Tiananmen Square. In 1989, students led pro-democracy protests against the Communist Party’s control over education, employment and even personal decisions, such as the size of families. The government has never given a clear account of how many were killed and has squelched discussion of the events in the years since.

Hong Kong was once known for its active civil society, large-scale protests, and outspoken press. But following the 2019 protest movement, authorities tightened political participation and prosecuted leaders of news organizations that had criticized the government. Many prominent activists were jailed under the national security law, while dozens of civil society organizations disbanded.

Beijing said the national security law was necessary for stability.