45 Pro-Democracy Activists Sentenced to Jail in Hong Kong

In Hong Kong's largest-ever national security trial, 45 former politicians and activists were on Tuesday sentenced to jail. They are among the so-called "Hong Kong 47," the 47 people arrested in 2021 during a crackdown related to the national security law China imposed on the special administrative region of Hong Kong in 2020 amid protests against Chinese rule. They are among Hong Kong's "most prominent pro-democracy figures," per the , and this is "the most forceful use" of the controversial law so far, per the .

The yearslong sentences are seen as a warning to the pro-democracy opposition in Hong Kong against resisting China's rule. Legal scholar and opposition strategist Benny Tai was sentenced to 10 years behind bars; 20 others got between five and eight years; and 24 others got four to almost five years. They were convicted of holding or taking part in an unofficial primary election due to their involvement in primaries leading up to Hong Kong's general election.



The message, according to one expert? "If you are being critical of the authorities both in Hong Kong and in China, then it's open season." The US "strongly condemns" the sentences, according to a spokesperson for the US consulate in Hong Kong. (More stories.

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