The European Union has criticised the conviction of two Hong Kong pro-democracy activists on subversion charges, saying the case confirmed a continued “deterioration” of freedom of expression and assembly in the territory.
Three national security judges at the West Kowloon Law Courts found Lee Cheuk-yan, 69, and Chow Hang-tung, 41, guilty of inciting subversion on August 21. The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, the group they once led, was also convicted.
The pair face up to 10 years in prison under the National Security Law imposed by Beijing in 2020. Sentencing would follow at a later date.
In a statement, the European External Action Service described the prosecution as politically motivated and pointed to the prolonged pre-trial detention of both defendants and the refusal of bail. It said the case undermined confidence in the rule of law set out in Hong Kong’s Basic Law.
The service urged the authorities to preserve space for independent civil society and to guarantee freedom of expression and peaceful assembly, repeating the EU’s call for respect for the territory’s high degree of autonomy under the one country, two systems principle.
For three decades the alliance organised the annual candlelight vigil in Victoria Park marking the 1989 crackdown on protesters around Tiananmen Square. It was the only large-scale public commemoration of those events on Chinese soil.
The judges found the group’s long-standing call to “end one-party rule” was intended to challenge the legitimacy of the Chinese Communist Party. The defence argued the campaign sought democratic reform rather than the overthrow of the party.
Lee and Chow, who both denied the charges, have been held since September 2021. Chow, a barrister, conducted her own defence, while a third former leader, the former lawmaker Albert Ho, pleaded guilty in January and is awaiting sentence.
A Hong Kong government spokesperson said the administration strongly condemned “biased remarks and smears” against its national security work.
The verdict follows the sentencing of media entrepreneur Jimmy Lai to 20 years in prison on February 9. The European Parliament had already responded to his conviction on January 22 with a resolution, carried by 503 votes to nine with 100 abstentions, urging a review of Hong Kong’s special trade status and sanctions on officials.
The Council of the European Union has adopted no such measures, and the bloc is meanwhile reassessing its trade exposure to China amid a record deficit with Beijing.
