Hong Kong 47: Activist Joshua Wong asks for no more than 10 years in prison for ‘active’ role in plot

Hong Kong opposition activist Joshua Wong Chi-fung actively participated in a devious scheme related to the unofficial 2020 parliamentary “primaries,” his defense attorney told the court on Friday, asking for a sentence of no more than 10 years in prison.

Former student leader Wong, 27, appeared in a West Kowloon court with five other opposition activists to seek lenient sentences for their roles in conspiring to overthrow state power by abusing the power of lawmakers in the city’s largest national security trial.

Wong’s lawyer, Marco Li Kwok-wai, said his client could be considered an “active participant” in the scheme, justifying a sentence of three to 10 years in prison under Beijing’s national security law, which provides for a three-tiered sentencing system.

The court heard testimony from Wong, who aligned himself with a “local resistance camp” that repeatedly called for international intervention during his election campaign and suggested the opposition’s dominance in parliament could be used to oppose the Chinese Communist Party.

Joshua Wong hopes to reform, his lawyer told the court. Photo: Nora Tam

Li stressed, however, that the calls were not intended to promote a conspiracy but were part of a broader attempt to promote the 2019 case. anti-government protests.

He asked three presiding judges of the Supreme Court to ignore a provision of the security law that provided for a “more severe punishment” for those conspiring with a foreign entity or person to commit secession or subversion.

Li asked judges to take into account the time the activist spent in two other criminal cases while he was in pretrial detention for the current offence when determining the sentence.

“He very much hopes that after all these wrongdoings, he will be able to break away from his past and be able to reform after serving his sentence for this particular crime,” Li said.

However, judges appeared more concerned about Wong’s involvement in the sedition conspiracy while he was on bail in other proceedings.

Judge Johnny Chan Jong-herng also questioned whether Wong was sincere in his hopes of reforming his ways.

“What you just said was said on his behalf by his mother and others (in mitigation letters), not by him,” he told the lawyer.

The judges added that Wong could not count on additional reductions in his sentence for his past contributions to the community, including his efforts to help residents fight the COVID-19 pandemic, which were considered mitigating factors in his previous cases.

Panel of three judges convicted Forty-five opposition figures tried to gain a controlling majority in the Legislative Council through primaries in 2020 only to cast disorderly votes against the government’s budget and force the chief minister to resign.

Also in the dock on Friday were former lawmakers Jeremy Tam Man-ho and Wu Chi-wai, former Kinda district councilors Li Ka-tat and Sze Tak-loy, and activist Tam Tak-chi.

All six, except Sze, pleaded guilty to the charges before the trial began.

The court had earlier heard the opinions of lawyers representing 11 convicted defendants, including the lawyer and main organizer Benny Tai Yiu-ting.

Under the security law, subversive activities are punishable by life imprisonment, and the most serious offenders could face a minimum of 10 years in prison.