The first person convicted under Hong Kong’s national security law was jailed for nine years on Friday for terrorist activities and inciting secession, judges said, in a watershed ruling with long-term implications for the city’s judicial landscape.

Former waiter Tong Ying-kit, 24, was accused of driving his motorcycle into three riot police last year while carrying a flag with the protest slogan “Liberate Hong Kong. Revolution of our times.”  Tong’s lawyer, Clive Grossman, told reporters outside the court the defence would appeal both the verdict and the sentence. He made no further comment.  Judges Esther Toh, Anthea Pang and Wilson Chan - picked by city leader Carrie Lam to hear national security cases - ruled on Tuesday that the slogan was “capable of inciting others to commit secession”. 

On Friday, the judges sentenced Tong to 6.5 years for inciting secession and 8 years for terrorist activities. Of these, 2.5 years will run consecutively, resulting in a total term of 9 years.  Human rights groups have criticised Tong’s conviction, saying it imposes new limits on free speech, as well as the precedents set by the trial, which they say contrast with Hong Kong’s common law traditions. 

“The sentencing of Tong Ying-kit to nine years confirms fears that the national security law is not merely a tool to instil terror into government critics in Hong Kong; it is a weapon that will be used to incarcerate them,” Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific Regional Director Yamini Mishra said in a statement. 

Tong is the first person to be found guilty of breaching the controversial security legislation, which also outlaws subversion and collusion with foreign powers.  This comes as draconian Beijing-imposed national security law, introduced to smother dissent and free speech in Hong Kong, has completed over one year, leaving the once British-controlled region in turmoil and chaos. 

China, with the help of local authorities, has been ruling Hong Kong with an iron fist. Authorities have also begun clamping down on pro-democracy activists. The law criminalises any act of secession (breaking away from China), subversion (undermining the power or authority of the central government), terrorism and collusion with foreign forces, with punishments of up to life in prison. 

Sources / More:: Reuters, FreePressjournal 

Pray:

Pray with us for Hong Kong to lead in proclaiming the Gospel to Chinese people worldwide. 

Pray with us for justice, grace and mercy in a land that is intent on the opposite. (Isaiah 1:17)