(Deutsche Welle Chinese website) Li Zhuoren and Zou Xingtong, leaders of the defunct Hong Kong stake association, were found guilty by the court on Friday (August 21) of "inciting subversion of state power" and may face up to 10 years in prison.
In 2021, Hong Kong stake leaders Li Zhuoren, Zou Xingtong, and Albert Ho were charged with the crime of "inciting subversion of state power" in accordance with the Hong Kong National Security Law. Prosecutors alleged that between July 1, 2020 and September 8, 2021, they instigated and participated in acts aimed at "subverting state power." After the National Security Law came into effect, they advocated "the end of one-party dictatorship" in the name of commemorating the "June Fourth Massacre" and continued to publish negative content against the country.
The judge said that the stake platform's platform to "end one-party dictatorship" is aimed at the Chinese Communist Party. Its purpose is not to demand China's return to multi-party cooperation, but to end or even overthrow the leadership of the Chinese Communist Party. According to the summary of the judgment, all three judges determined that Li Zhuoren and Zou Xingtong’s actions constituted “overturning or destroying the fundamental system of the Constitution.”
The ruling also quoted the judgment of the "47 People Case" and determined that "other illegal means" referred to in the "crime of inciting subversion" can include any behavior that violates the Constitution and has the purpose of overthrowing or destroying China's "fundamental system", regardless of whether it involves the use of violence, threats or other criminal offenses.
The judge said the defendants were not being tried based on their political views or beliefs, and the ruling did not involve issues such as democracy, the June Fourth incident or criticism of the central government. The defendant's words and deeds before the implementation of the National Security Law are only considered as background considerations in the case and are not the subject of the case for the crime of "inciting subversion of power."
Li Zhuoren and Zou Xingtong were both arrested in 2021 and have been remanded in custody for nearly five years. The case started trial in January this year. It was originally expected to last 75 days, but closing arguments were finally completed on the 24th day. Li Zhuoren and Zou Xingtong have both pleaded not guilty, while another defendant, Ho Chun-yan, has pleaded guilty; according to general judicial procedures, guilty pleas may result in a lighter sentence.
Li Zhuoren and Zou Xingtong were found guilty and could be sentenced to up to 10 years in prison. The judge is expected to hear the plea at a hearing on the 28th. The two must submit written plea submissions before the 26th, and may hand down sentences together with Ho Junren in the future.
"End one-party rule"
The Stake Association has held candlelight vigils for 30 consecutive years since 1990, attracting up to 180,000 people to mourn the victims of the June 4th incident. In 2020, the Hong Kong government banned the Victoria Park "June 4th" gala for the first time due to the epidemic. A few weeks later, Hong Kong's National Security Law was passed.
The following year, the stake association was forced to disband, and there were no large-scale "June 4th" rallies in Victoria Park. Among the five major programs proposed by the stake association over the years, the idea of "ending one-party dictatorship" became the reason for Zou Xingtong and others to be accused of "inciting subversion of state power."
Lee Cheuk-yan said during the trial that the stake association's platform to "end one-party dictatorship" is to hope that Hong Kong will move toward democracy and let the people decide who will lead it, but not to end the leadership of the Communist Party.
During the trial of this case, Zou Xingtong, a barrister, made several speeches in person in court to defend himself. She once said that the stake association was born in the "1989" era and has the responsibility to continue to fight for the deceased's demands, which is to establish a democratic system. "What is the biggest obstacle standing in the way of this goal? It is the arrogant logic of one-party dictatorship and no distinction between party and state. How can anyone who sincerely pursues democracy tolerate the existence of one-party dictatorship?" She believes that if one-party dictatorship is not ended, any accountability will be a fish in the woods.
In the face of "security", nothing means anything
Li Yanhao, a senior researcher at the Georgetown University Asian Law Center (GCAL), believes that this judgment reflects the extent to which Hong Kong courts are "trapped in the same party-led judicial system as in mainland China."
Elaine Pearson, Asia director of Human Rights Watch, criticized in a statement that Friday's conviction showed that "public mourning has now become a crime in Hong Kong."
Urania Chiu, a law lecturer at Oxford Brookes University, said the case "sends a strong and chilling message to civil society: any criticism of the country and its policies, no matter how peaceful, is no longer welcome in Hong Kong."
Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council expressed regret and sadness over the case, criticizing "the CCP and the Hong Kong government's continued political prosecutions... which once again confirms that the CCP and the Hong Kong government continue to use the judiciary as a purge tool to arbitrarily erase Hong Kong's original diversity and freedom." It also called on the Hong Kong government to immediately release those detained in this case and stop suppressing dissidents in the name of national security.
Before the ruling was announced, Zou Xingtong posted on Patreon on Thursday, saying, "Justice is in the heart of the people. There is no need to look up to this kind of top-down judgment, and one judgment is nothing."
She noted that since the start of the trial, prison staff had changed the way she was escorted to court. In addition to handcuffs, they will also wear shackles, waist chains and anklets, and be led by correctional officers on chains "like loose dogs." In addition, there was a hard object inside the handcuffs and a waist chain locked above her abdomen, forcing her shoulders, back, wrists and other body joints to be locked in unnatural positions.
She said: "Our opinions have experienced pain and are nothing in the face of 'security'."
