Hong Kong Court Convicts Tiananmen Vigil Organizers of Inciting Subversion

Hong Kong Court Convicts Tiananmen Vigil Organizers of Inciting Subversion

A Hong Kong court has convicted two former organizers of the city's annual Tiananmen Square vigil of inciting subversion. Lee Cheuk-yan and Chow Hang-tung, former leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, were found guilty under a national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020. The law has been used to crack down on the city's pro-democracy movement, with many leading activists jailed or forced into exile. The verdict is the latest blow to Hong Kong's freedom of expression, which has been eroded in recent years. The city's annual candlelight vigil, which used to draw tens of thousands of people, was banned during the coronavirus pandemic and has not been allowed to resume. According to France 24, the vigil was the only large-scale public commemoration of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown on Chinese soil. Chow and Lee were convicted of inciting subversion for their role in organizing the vigil and for calling for an end to "one-party dictatorship" in China. The prosecution argued that their calls were aimed at unlawfully trying to topple China's fundamental system and central political bodies. As reported by HuffPost, the defense denied this, arguing that their campaign was about moving toward democracy and urging the party not to enforce a "dictatorship." Chow quoted Nobel Peace Prize laureate and Chinese Tiananmen activist Liu Xiaobo during the trial, saying the Alliance had no enemies but rather opposed one-party rule. She told the court that seeking justice for Tiananmen victims is a moral duty, which "should not be classified as incitement to commit a crime." The trial was heard by a panel of three judges, and the defendants face a maximum prison term of 10 years. A third activist, Albert Ho, had previously pleaded guilty and will be sentenced later. The verdict has been condemned by human rights groups and Western nations, who say that the national security law has been used to quash dissent and end Hong Kong's unique freedoms. As stated by RNZ, the Hong Kong government has defended the law, saying it was necessary to return the city to order and stability after huge and often violent democracy protests in 2019. Chow, a 41-year-old lawyer, conducted her own defense during the trial. She argued that the alliance's calls for an end to one-party dictatorship were not aimed at toppling the Communist Party, but rather at promoting democracy and urging the party not to enforce a dictatorship. In her Patreon post, Chow recalled being shackled in handcuffs, and in waist and ankle chains, for trips to court from prison, saying she was walked by correctional service officers "like a dog." She also said that "justice lives in the hearts of the people. There is no need to look up to this kind of top-down ruling, and one verdict doesn’t matter much." Lee, a 69-year-old veteran unionist, has been actively engaged in Hong Kong's labor movement since the 1970s. He has also been involved in human rights issues in China and was a leader of the Hong Kong Alliance. He told the court that his experience during the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, where he witnessed the violence and bloodshed, had made him realize that advancing democracy was his "lifelong commitment." Lee visited the students demonstrating in Beijing for political reform in late May 1989 in the Alliance's early days. He was present when the government sent in troops and tanks to quash the protesters on June 4 that year, and has said he heard gunfire and witnessed the wounded and dead on Tiananmen Square. The verdict has significant implications for Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement, which has been largely dismantled since the introduction of the national security law. Many leading activists have been jailed, and dozens of civil society groups have dissolved. The conviction of Chow and Lee is seen as a further blow to the movement, and it is unclear how it will respond to the verdict. As HuffPost reported, Eric Lai, a senior fellow with the Georgetown Center for Asian Law, said the charge of inciting subversion was commonly used in mainland China to criminalize the acts of human rights lawyers, activists and intellectuals, including late Nobel laureate Liu Xiaobo. In a statement, Chow said that she would continue to fight for democracy and human rights, despite the conviction. Lee's wife, Elizabeth Tang, said that she was disappointed and angry about the result, and that she would decide whether to appeal later. The case has also sparked international condemnation, with human rights groups and Western nations criticizing the Hong Kong government for its handling of the trial. The US has said that the national security law has been used to quash dissent and end Hong Kong's unique freedoms, and that the conviction of Chow and Lee is a further blow to the city's autonomy. As the city awaits the sentencing of Chow and Lee, it is clear that the verdict has significant implications for Hong Kong's future. The conviction of the two activists is a further erosion of the city's freedom of expression, and it is unclear how the pro-democracy movement will respond to the verdict. One thing is certain, however: the memory of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown will not be extinguished, and the fight for democracy and human rights in Hong Kong will continue. As Zhou Fengsuo, a former student leader at the Tiananmen Square protests who now has US citizenship, told CNN, "Authorities can extinguish the candles in Victoria Park, but they cannot extinguish the memory of June 4."