On Friday, the Hong Kong court handed down heavy sentences to three former core members of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, including Lee Cheuk-yan, for their involvement in organizing the annual June 4 candlelight vigil and advocating for an end to one-party rule. The international community has expressed strong concern and condemnation, with family members also speaking out against the ruling.
The now-dissolved Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China and its three leaders, Lee Cheuk-yan, Chow Hang-tung, and Albert Ho, were found guilty under the Hong Kong national security law of “incitement to subvert state power.” In a verdict announced on Friday, Lee Cheuk-yan and Chow Hang-tung, who pleaded not guilty, were sentenced to 7 years and 7 years 3 months respectively, while Albert Ho, who admitted guilt, received a 5-year 2-month sentence. The Alliance was fined HK$1.5 million, to be paid within three months.
The U.S. House Committee on China Affairs stated on X platform that organizers of the Tiananmen candlelight vigil in Hong Kong were sentenced to years in prison because they refused to let the CCP erase its brutal actions on June 4, 1989. These organizers led the Tiananmen vigil in Hong Kong for over 30 years, gathering tens of thousands of people to remember the CCP’s massacre of innocent civilians.
The Committee called for the immediate release of the political prisoners in Hong Kong, standing in solidarity with them.
The Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), a bipartisan initiative of the U.S. Congress, published a statement on X platform saying, “While Hong Kong authorities may insist that today’s judgment is not politically motivated, such claims are no longer convincing. The once-respected judiciary in Hong Kong, known for upholding the rights to expression and peaceful assembly, has now become a tool of the Chinese Communist Party to punish those exercising these rights.”
The CECC urged Congress to consider passing the Hong Kong Judicial Sanctions Act to hold those responsible for turning the Hong Kong courts into tools of repression accountable.
European Union foreign affairs spokesperson Anouar El Anouni expressed regret on X platform over the lengthy imprisonment of the three former leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China following a trial motivated by politics. The EU warned that the ruling “undermines confidence in the rule of law and damages Hong Kong’s reputation.”
The EU deplored the sentencing of three former leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, Lee Cheuk-yan, Chow Hang-tung, and Albert Ho, to lengthy prison terms following a politically motivated trial.
The British consulate in Hong Kong reiterated its widespread use of the national security law to restrict freedom of expression, damaging the commitments made in the Sino-British Joint Declaration, and called for the respect of rights and freedoms.
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights called for the repeal of these judgments in a statement.
Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director, Sarah Brooks, described the verdict as a “triple tragedy” against unjustly punished activists, survivors and victims of the Tiananmen incident, and a generation of Hong Kongers deprived of the space to discuss history, calling it an insult to history.
Human Rights Watch’s Elaine Pearson said the “harsh sentences” highlight the cruelty and insecurity of a government scared of remembering history and its people.
Amnesty International posted on X platform that the rulings “not only unjust for the individuals and the victims of the crackdown, but also deprive generations of Hong Kong people of the space to explore this pivotal event in modern Chinese history.”
Amnesty International called for their immediate unconditional release.
Sophie Richardson, Co-Executive Director of the China Human Rights Defenders network, stated on X platform that Hong Kong activists are imprisoned for exercising and defending human rights, noting that attempts by the Chinese government and Xi Jinping to block the truth and history will eventually be futile.
Hong Kong Watch, based in London, condemned the sentencing as an “insult to the rule of law” and urged governments worldwide to demand the release of the three individuals.
The Hong Kong Centre for Human Rights criticized the authorities’ use of social influence as a criterion for punishment, describing it as “criminalization of speech” aimed at eliminating civil society and dissenting voices, urging the immediate unconditional release of Lee Cheuk-yan, Albert Ho, Chow Hang-tung, and all those imprisoned for peacefully exercising their fundamental rights.
Hong Kong Labour Rights Monitor, along with international labor organizations including the ITUC, EI, BWI, IFJ, and Labour Start, initiated a global petition calling for the release of Lee Cheuk-yan and Chow Hang-tung and the overturning of their convictions.
Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council expressed regret and condemnation for the verdict, stating that the pursuit of democracy and human rights should not be criminalized, and that the use of national security as a pretext for framing charges and conducting political trials shields authoritarian rule, exposing the “one country, two systems” as a deception.
The statement emphasized that the convictions of Lee Cheuk-yan and others on charges of “incitement to subvert state power” not only constitute comprehensive oppression of the Hong Kong people but also reveal the true face of the CCP’s facade of democracy.
At the courtroom in West Kowloon, attending observers included Lee Cheuk-yan’s wife, Dang Yinyi, Chow Hang-tung’s mother, Liu Huazhen, former Executive Committee members of the Alliance, Liu Jiayi and Tang Yuk-kwun, former Democratic Party chairwoman, Emily Lau Wai-hing, Wu Min-er, former chairwoman of the Confederation of Trade Unions, and representatives from the U.S. and European consulates, as well as over a hundred others including the retired Bishop of Hong Kong, John Tong Hon.
Lee Cheuk-yan’s wife, Dang Yinyi, told the media, “Even the prosecutors and judges acknowledged that they did not commit any unlawful acts or use any violence, yet they were still sentenced to such heavy penalties. Hong Kong does not have freedom of speech. I deeply regret this.”
Chow Hang-tung’s mother, Liu Huazhen, said, “You don’t need to be too sad about the judgment today. Don’t lose heart, and most importantly, don’t feel guilty. Because guilt is a divisive poison.”
“There was a moment after the courtroom debate when I went to visit her (Chow Hang-tung). She said, ‘I can finally take off the lawyer’s robe and speak the truth freely.’ She is not just a competent lawyer but an outstanding defendant,” Liu Huazhen remarked.
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) reported that former Alliance Executive Committee member Liu Jiayi disclosed that Lee Cheuk-yan and Chow Hang-tung will appeal against the convictions and sentences.
The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements in China, established officially on May 21, 1989, during the million-strong march supporting the Eight-Nine Democracy Movement, has been organizing the annual candlelight vigil for the Beijing Tiananmen crackdown since 1989 until it was banned by the Hong Kong government in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In September 2021, Lee Cheuk-yan, Chow Hang-tung, and Albert Ho were formally charged, and the Alliance passed a resolution to dissolve at the end of the same month.