International condemnation was swift, with the United States, Australia and rights groups slamming the sentencing as evidence of the erosion of political freedoms in the city since Beijing imposed the security law in 2020.
Tai's jail term is the longest yet handed out under the law, which was brought in to quash dissent after massive, sometimes violent pro-democracy protests the year before.
The group, which included figures from across Hong Kong's once-diverse political spectrum, was charged with subversion after they held an informal poll in 2020 as part of a strategy to win a pro-democracy electoral majority.
On Tuesday, the 45 were led into court and crammed into the defendant's dock, from where they occasionally waved to the public gallery.
Along with Tai, pro-democracy politicians Au Nok-hin, Andrew Chiu, Ben Chung and Australian citizen Gordon Ng were singled out as organisers and received sentences of up to seven years and three months.
Australia's government said it was "gravely concerned" by the sentencing, and said it would continue to advocate for Ng's "best interests".
The other 40 defendants received terms beginning from four years and two months.
After Tai, the second-longest sentence was handed to young activist Owen Chow, at seven years and nine months, with the court saying he "took a more proactive role in the scheme than other defendants".
- ' Refused to be tamed' -
"Long Hair" Leung Kwok-hung, the 68-year-old co-founder of the city's last standing opposition party, the League of Social Democrats, received a term of six years and nine months.
His wife and LSD leader Chan Po-ying told AFP outside the courtroom that the term was "within our expectations".
"It is what it is -- no matter (whether) I laugh or I cry, so I choose to laugh a bit," she said.
Leticia Wong, a former district councillor for a since-disbanded pro-democracy party who attended the sentencing, told AFP that she found the terms were "encouraging people to plead guilty and testify against their peers".
"For those who refused to be tamed, punishment is obviously heavier," Wong said.
Western countries and international rights groups have condemned the trial as evidence of Hong Kong's increased authoritarianism.
A spokesperson for the US consulate in Hong Kong said Tuesday that the United States "strongly condemns" the sentencing, adding the defendants were "aggressively prosecuted and jailed for peacefully participating in normal political activity".
"Today's harsh sentences... reflect just how fast Hong Kong's civil liberties and judicial independence have nosedived in the past four years," Maya Wang, associate China director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.
Anna Kwok, executive director of the Washington-based Hong Kong Democracy Council, condemned the sentencing as "an attack on the essence of Hong Kong -- one that yearns for freedom, democracy and the right to political expression".
China and Hong Kong have pushed back against criticism, saying the security law restored order following the 2019 protests, and warning against "interference" from other countries.
- 'Constitutional crisis' -
Forty-seven people were initially charged after they were arrested in January 2021, making this case the largest by number of defendants.
Thirty-one pleaded guilty, and 16 stood a 118-day trial last year, with 14 convicted and two acquitted in May.
The aim of the election primary, which took place in July 2020, was to pick a cross-party shortlist of pro-democracy candidates to increase their electoral prospects.
If a majority was achieved, the plan was to force the government to meet the 2019 protesters' demands -- including universal suffrage -- by threatening to indiscriminately veto the budget.
Three senior judges handpicked by the government to try security cases said the group would have caused a "constitutional crisis".
Hong Kong: a turbulent road since handover
Hong Kong (AFP) Nov 19, 2024 -
Hong Kong has endured a turbulent history since being handed over from Britain to China 27 years ago.
Here are some key dates:
- 1997: Handover -
On July 1, at midnight, Hong Kong is returned to Chinese sovereignty after 156 years of British rule.
The tiny territory has its own mini-constitution that governs its autonomy as a Special Administrative Region within China.
Beijing promises a "One Country, Two Systems" approach to the territory, meaning it will maintain freedoms not available to mainland Chinese.
The city is governed by a chief executive, chosen by a Beijing-controlled committee. Laws are passed by a legislative council, of which a minority of members are democratically elected.
- Financial, then health crisis -
In October, just months after the handover, the Asian financial crisis grips Hong Kong, plunging the banking hub into economic slowdown.
Five years later, the pneumonia-like Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) virus kills 299 people in Hong Kong and 1,800 worldwide, devastating Asian economies.
- 2003: China steps in, national security bill -
Beijing seeks to relaunch Hong Kong's economy, moving in 2003 to gradually lift customs barriers on Hong Kong products exported to the mainland. Travel restrictions on Chinese from the mainland are eased, boosting tourism numbers.
In July, an unprecedented half a million of Hong Kong's seven million people march against an unpopular national security bill, which they see as an attempt by Beijing to restrict their freedoms.
The bill is subsequently dropped -- a rare government climbdown.
- 2004: Calls for more democracy -
In January, 100,000 people march through the city calling for more democracy, bringing to a head a simmering row over the constitution's lack of clarity on electing lawmakers. In April, China rules out a swift change.
- 2007: Universal suffrage promised -
Beijing schedules for 2017 the first democratic election of the chief executive, and for 2020 elections to the legislative council. The promises disappoint pro-democracy demonstrators demanding universal suffrage from 2012.
- 2014: Umbrella Movement -
Beijing proposes a limited version of universal suffrage meaning Hong Kongers will be able to choose from a small group of Beijing-vetted candidates.
The announcement sparks a 79-day occupation of major thoroughfares known as the "Umbrella Movement". The protesters secure no concessions from Beijing, prompting a minority of protesters in subsequent years to harden their positions, including advocating Hong Kong's independence.
- 2019: Massive protests -
The Hong Kong government tries to fast-track a bill allowing extraditions to China's Communist Party-controlled courts, sparking the biggest protests since the handover.
Millions take to the streets during seven months of unrest while a smaller section of hardcore protesters frequently battle police in often violent confrontations that see thousands arrested.
The movement soon morphs into a new call for democracy and police accountability, but is eventually suppressed.
- 2020: Covid-19 -
In January, Hong Kong is one of the first places affected by the coronavirus epidemic.
The executive takes drastic measures, including a ban on public gatherings, effectively ending the pro-democracy demonstrations.
- 2020: National Security Law -
In June, Beijing passes a national security law for Hong Kong, bypassing the local legislature.
China's security agencies will be able to operate publicly in the city for the first time.
Beijing will have jurisdiction over some cases, toppling the legal firewall that has existed between Hong Kong and mainland courts.
Calls for independence or greater autonomy are banned.
The move sees most pro-democracy leaders either jailed, giving up politics or fleeing abroad.
Several countries say the law has ended the principle of the "One Country, Two Systems" approach, which was supposed to be in place until 2047.
- 2021: Electoral reform -
In March, China approves a radical "patriots only" reform of the electoral system, which completely sidelines the opposition.
Under new rules, only those deemed politically loyal can stand for office, and the number of directly elected seats is slashed.
- 2022: Xi visits -
Chinese leader Xi Jinping visits Hong Kong for the 25th anniversary of the handover, the halfway point of the 50-year transitionary governance model.
He praises the "One Country, Two Systems" model, saying there is "no reason at all to change and it must be upheld in the long run".
Hong Kong's former security chief John Lee, who oversaw the clampdown on the pro-democracy movement, is sworn in as the city's new leader following a selection process where he faces no rivals.
- 2024: Homegrown security law -
In March, Hong Kong passes an additional, homegrown national security law, which city leader Lee said fulfilled "a constitutional responsibility that is overdue for 26 years".
The law -- which stems from a requirement under Hong Kong's Basic Law Article 23 -- punishes five major categories of crimes, including treason, insurrection, espionage, sabotage and foreign interference, with penalties up to life in prison.
In November, the city's largest trial under the 2020 national security law comes to a close after a years-long process.
Forty-five democracy campaigners from across Hong Kong's once-diverse political spectrum are jailed for subversion, with chief organiser Benny Tai receiving a 10-year sentence.
Related Links
Democracy in the 21st century at TerraDaily.com
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