Who are the democracy activists facing jail?

From a 68-year-old former opposition lawmaker to a 27-year-old scholar activist, fourteen pro-democracy campaigners were convicted for subversion via a Hong Kong courtroom within the town’s biggest nationwide safety case.

They’re amongst 47 protesters and activists – higher referred to as the Hong Kong 47 – who had been charged 3 years in the past in what used to be unmistakable as the largest crackdown beneath the Nationwide Safety Legislation (NSL) imposed via China.

Officers had accused the 47 – 8 ladies and 39 males – of seeking to “overthrow” the federal government via operating unofficial primaries to pick out opposition applicants for native elections.

The judges of their ruling assuredly with the prosecutions’ argument that this “scheme” via the activists would have created a “constitutional crisis” if the winners of the main had certainly been elected as lawmakers.

16 of them seemed in courtroom on Thursday and pleaded now not accountable in entrance of 3 Prime Court docket judges. Fourteen of them had been discovered accountable, and two others had been acquitted – Lawrence Lau, a barrister and previous district councillor, and Lee Yue-shun, additionally a former district councillor. Sentencing is anticipated at a nearest occasion.

The residue 31 had pleaded accountable. 4 of them testifed for the prosecution, together with former lawmakers Au Nok-hin and Andrew Chiu. Presen this in most cases results in a discounted sentence, it’s dense if it applies to the NSL.

The primaries had been held in July 2020 in defiance of Hong Kong officers and amid blackmails that they may breach the NSL, which had come into impact days ahead of.

Beijing defends the regulation, which adopted accumulation pro-democracy protests, as vital to guard steadiness, however critics say it has stripped town of its prized independence and freedoms.

Some are well-known, reminiscent of opposition lawmakers – Claudia Mo, Helena Wong, Kwok ka-ki – and icons of the 2014 pro-democracy protests that rocked Hong Kong – Joshua Wong and Benny Tai.

However many like Owen Chow, Ventus Lau and Tiffany Yuen represented a fresh day of vocal activists. Mr Lau and Mr Chow had been amongst loads who stormed town’s Legislative Council (LegCo) and spray-painted Hong Kong’s brand in what become a pivotal past within the 2019 protests.

Next there are those that weren’t curious about politics however had been galvanised via the 2019 protests – social staff like Hendrick Lui, marketers like Mike Lam and a former governess, Winnie Yu.

Alternative well-known figures reminiscent of Nathan Legislation and ex-legislator Ted Hui additionally ran within the primaries, however fled Hong Kong.

So via the presen the 47 had been arrested in early 2021, maximum of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy campaigners had been at the back of bars or in exile. Lots of the accused were in prison since next as pre-trial detentions have turn out to be the norm beneath NSL.

China known as him a “hardcore troublemaker” for advocating Hong Kong self rule and describing the Communist Birthday celebration’s rule as a “dictatorship”.

A student and regulation trainer, Benny Tai first drew consideration when he wrote a newspaper column proposing an occupy sit-in to call for larger autonomy.

This sooner or later become the pro-democracy Occupy Central motion that he based at the side of two others. It used to be a historical civil disobedience marketing campaign that known as for honest and isolated elections in Hong Kong.

The motion died unwell however 5 years nearest, in 2019, Mr Tai used to be sentenced to jail for his position within the protests.

A 12 months nearest, later the NSL used to be imposed, he used to be fired from his tenured activity on the prestigious College of Hong Kong (HKU) over his felony conviction.

Mr Tai accused the college of bowing to Chinese language power and known as it the “end of academic freedom” within the town.

“I am heartbroken to witness the demise of my beloved university,” the 60-year-old nearest mentioned in a Fb put up.

Through next, he used to be already going through accusations of subversion beneath NSL for establishing what Hong Kong and Beijing officals known as an “illegal” number one.

Arguably Hong Kong’s most famed pro-democracy activist, Joshua Wong’s walk into activism began when he used to be simply 14.

Through 2014, he had turn out to be the face of the Umbrella Motion, a accumulation scholar protests with the umbrella as a logo, which sprang up along the Occupy Central sit-in.

He used to be simply 20 when his activism first landed him in prison. He had extra spells in prison, together with one in 2019, when he walked out a life later loads of 1000’s marched towards a massively debatable extradition invoice – it will permit Hong Kongers to be despatched to mainland China to stand trial.

The protests towards the invoice engulfed Hong Kong for months. Mr Wong used to be amongst 1000’s who held a 15-hour siege of police headquarters in Wan Chai district – they pelted the development with eggs and sprayed graffiti on its partitions – in June of that 12 months.

Prosecutors mentioned he led the protest, pointing to a video of him calling for the community to “totally besiege police headquarters”. Despite the fact that Mr Wong used to be a campaigner, the 2019 protests had been broadly unmistakable as a spontaneous, “leaderless” movement.

He was jailed for his role in them – and placed in solitary confinement.

But he remained defiant after pleading guilty: “Perhaps the authorities wish me to stay in prison one term after another. But I am persuaded that neither prison bars, nor election ban, nor any other arbitrary powers would stop us from activism.”

He used to be nonetheless serving his sentence when he used to be charged with subversion beneath NSL.

Former opposition lawmaker Leung Kwok-hung, higher referred to as Lengthy Hair for his hairstyle, as soon as described himself as a “Marxist revolutionary”.

He used to be discovered accountable of subversion via the courtroom.

The 68-year-old used to be recognized for his political theatrics – certainly one of his signature strikes concerned hurling bananas as an indication of protest. When he used to be sworn in once more as a lawmaker in 2016, he excepted a balloon with a political banner and held a yellow umbrella, mentioning that the “Umbrella movement would never end”.

This were given him disqualified from the council. He used to be arrested and had repeated stints in prison for collaborating within the 2019 protests.

Later the NSL used to be imposed in 2020, he married his long-time spouse, Vanessa Chan, sometimes called Chan Po-ying, who’s a well-known activist. They had been a number of the creation individuals of a political birthday celebration, the League of Social Democrats.

They mentioned they made up our minds to marry as a result of will have to certainly one of them be jailed, they might have larger felony rights reminiscent of jail visitation.

40 days later the marriage, Mr Leung used to be charged.

Claudia Mo, recognized affectionately in Cantonese as Auntie Mo, used to be a well-known opposition lawmaker.

She were a journalist on the AFP information company, the place she lined the 1989 Tiananmen Sq. crackdown.

The 67-year-old helped arrange the opposition Civic Birthday celebration in 2006 and via 2012, she received a seat in LegCo – she gave up British citizenship to store place of work.

She used to be amongst 15 lawmakers who resigned en masse from LegCo later 4 pro-democracy lawmakers had been ousted in November 2020. The exit left LegCo with out a opposition presence.

“We had to,” she mentioned on the presen. “We need to protest against what could be the ultimate Beijing crackdown on Hong Kong – to silence the last bit of dissent in the city.”

Police “smashed through into the living room” to arrest her within the early hours of 6 January 2021, the FT reported, mentioning an unnamed supply who described the raid as “sheer thuggery”.

She has been in prison all the way through. When her husband, British journalist Philip Bowring, used to be significantly in poor health, Ms Mo used to be now not allowed to consult with him from jail.

A protracted-time political and LGBTQI activist, Jimmy Sham additionally led certainly one of Hong Kong’s biggest pro-democracy teams, the Civil Human Rights Entrance (CHRF).

The gang disbanded in 2021, pronouncing it might not perform amid “unprecedented” demanding situations posed via China’s crackdown.

Mr Sham used to be violently attacked a number of occasions in 2019, and in a single example, used to be left bloodied in the street, with a head trauma. The CHRF accused authorities supporters of this and alternative attacks towards pro-democracy activists on the presen – nevertheless it used to be by no means confirmed.

The 37-year-old married his spouse in Unutilized York in 2013 and fought for Hong Kong to recognise out of the country same-sex marriages. Hong Kong’s lead courtroom granted him a bias victory in 2023 when it ordered the federal government to determine a framework to recognise same-sex partnerships.

Through next Mr Sham used to be in jail for his position within the Hong Kong primaries.

Bail has been again and again denied, with a pass judgement on pronouncing he used to be a “determined and resolute young man” who would most likely proceed to dedicate “acts endangering national security” will have to he be excepted.

Thirty three-year-old Gwyneth Ho, who used to be convicted for subversion on Thursday, had labored for a number of information retailers together with BBC Chinese language, government-run broadcaster RTHK and Be on one?s feet Information, ahead of pivoting to politics.

She shot to repute when she inadvertently are living streamed herself being crushed up via a mob throughout the 2019 protests. The assault put her in health facility.

She ran within the 2020 primaries deemed unlawful via Hong Kong officers – and received a prime collection of votes in her constituency. Lower than a 12 months nearest, she used to be arrested.

She mentioned throughout her trial that it used to be “inevitable” that the 12 pro-democracy applicants, together with her, had been disqualified from contesting the legislative elections.

“I believe that most Hong Kongers knew deep down in their hearts that fighting for democracy under the Chinese communist regime has always been a fantasy,” she mentioned.

She used to be quickly cancelled via Prime Court docket Pass judgement on Alex Lee who instructed her to “calm down”.

With symbol contributions from Hong Kong InMedia