Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Wong handed 10 years in jail

Beijing, Nov 5 (EFE).- A Hong Kong court sentenced prominent pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong to 10 years in prison on Thursday for conspiracy to collude with foreign forces, his second conviction under Beijing’s National Security Law.

Wong, 30, who pleaded guilty in September and faced a potential life sentence, received the ruling at the Hong Kong High Court, according to local media outlets including public broadcaster RTHK.

The case centers on allegations that in 2020, a year after the massive anti-government protests in the city, Wong urged foreign nations to impose sanctions and other measures against the semi-autonomous region of Hong Kong and China as they advocated for Hong Kong’s “democratic self-determination.”

In his ruling, Judge Tam Yiu-ho deemed Wong’s offense one of a “grave nature” and warranted a prison term of 10 years, the minimum term for such offenses and with three years taken off for his guilty plea.

He claimed that Wong and his accomplices, including former lawmaker Nathan Law (currently in exile), leveraged their contacts with high-ranking foreign officials and institutions to promote foreign interference via social media and major Western news outlets.

The judge further said that the sanctions and other «hostile measures» advocated by the activists could have led to highly detrimental consequences for both Hong Kong and mainland China.

The charge specifically concerns the period between July 1 and Nov. 23, 2020, immediately following the June 30, 2020, entry into force of the national security legislation imposed by Beijing in the wake of the mass anti-government protests that took place in the former British colony in 2019.

With this new conviction, Wong is set to remain behind bars until the end of 2036, when he will be 40.

In January, he was due to complete his current four-year, eight-month prison sentence for conspiracy to subvert state power, a charge stemming from the well-known ‘Hong Kong 47’ case, which relates to unofficial primary elections organized by the opposition in July 2020.

Two months of the new term will run concurrently with the sentence Wong is currently serving.

‘Cruel and unjust’

“The harsh sentence on baseless charges against Joshua Wong is cruel and unjust,” said Elaine Pearson, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “Young people promoting social change are an asset for any vibrant society, but the Hong Kong government puts them behind bars.”

Both HRW and Amnesty International urged his release.

Amnesty’s Deputy Regional Director Sarah Brooks said “Wong’s bravery in speaking truth to power should be commended, but instead in Hong Kong it makes him a criminal.»

«Today’s sentence is another grim reminder of how Hong Kong’s National Security Law has become a tool to punish dissent rather than to genuinely protect national security,» she added.

Wong has been incarcerated since November 2020. He was served with a new arrest warrant in connection with this second case in June 2025 while held at Stanley Prison, preventing his release.

A prominent figure in the pro-democracy movement since participating, at age 17, in the 2014 protests known as the ‘Umbrella Revolution,’ Wong co-founded the party Demosisto in 2016 alongside Law and other activists.

They urged for the passing of legislation such as the US’ Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act, prosecutors said.

The group announced its dissolution on the day the National Security Law, which criminalizes acts such as subversion, secession, terrorism, and collusion with foreign forces, came into effect.

Law left Hong Kong in 2020 and remains in exile. Hong Kong police have offered a reward of HK$1 million ($128,000) for information leading to his arrest.

The authorities maintain that the legislation restored stability to Hong Kong following the 2019 protests, while human rights organizations and foreign governments have condemned its impact on political and civil liberties. EFE

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