Hong Kong: Joshua Wong Gets Nearly 10 More Years in Prison

Hong Kong’s High Court sentenced democracy activist Joshua Wong to 10 years in prison for conspiring to collude with foreign forces, a charge Human Rights Watch describes as baseless. Two months overlap with a sentence he is already serving, leaving him expected to remain imprisoned until late 2036. Prosecutors relied on Wong’s earlier international advocacy, including petitions, interviews, and meetings with foreign officials urging action over human rights abuses. They also cited social media posts and comments after Hong Kong’s National Security Law took effect in 2020, although the cited material did not itself directly call for sanctions. Wong pleaded guilty in September, but the court classified the offense as grave, triggering a sentence of at least 10 years despite the usual reduction for a guilty plea.

The case follows a series of convictions that have kept Wong in custody since 2020, including charges related to protests, an unauthorized Tiananmen vigil, and an unofficial election primary. Human Rights Watch argues that authorities are stacking charges against prominent activists to prolong their detention and using the security law to suppress peaceful expression and dismantle civil society. It also criticizes restrictions that kept details of Wong’s pretrial proceedings from public view, undermining open justice. Wong rose to prominence as a teenager and became an international symbol of Hong Kong’s democracy movement. Human Rights Watch calls for his immediate release and urges foreign governments to condemn the sentence, impose targeted sanctions on responsible officials, and reconsider their broader relations with China.