The Pak Global Pakistan — The Hong Kong Court of Appeal has dismissed the appeals of jailed pro-democracy campaigners involved in the landmark “Hong Kong 47” case under the Beijing-imposed national security law. The case revolves around the mass arrest of leading activists and politicians who organised an unofficial primary election in 2020, which authorities labelled a subversive plot against the government.
On Monday, appeals from eleven of the activists, including former lawmakers Leung Kwok-hung, Lam Cheuk-ting, Raymond Chan, and Helena Wong, as well as ex-journalist Gwyneth Ho, were rejected. The court also upheld all sentences, which ranged from four to ten years and have drawn widespread international criticism.
Two activists, including pro-democracy former district councillor Lawrence Lau, were acquitted, with the court maintaining these verdicts following prosecution appeals.
The crackdown followed the 2019 pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong and the subsequent imposition of a sweeping national security law by Beijing in 2020, severely curtailing dissent. The unofficial primary election aimed to secure a legislative majority to push for democratic reforms such as universal suffrage and police accountability. The mass arrests marked a significant blow to Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement, impacting a broad spectrum of activists from moderate reformists to radical localists.