Hong Kong court convicts two pro-democracy activists of subversion

A Hong Kong court on Thursday convicted two pro-democracy Tiananmen activists under Beijing's controversial national security law for "incitement to subversion."

Lee Cheuk-yan, 69, and Chow Hang-tung, 41, had organized candlelight vigils to mark Beijing's deadly 1989 Tiananmen crackdown. They were charged in 2021 and both pleaded not guilty.

They face a maximum prison term of 10 years and are expected to be sentenced at a later date.

Germany, France and Taiwan call for immediate release of activists

Germany and France on Friday morning published a joint statement to say that both "deeply regret the guilty verdict against human rights lawyer and democracy activist Chow Hang-tung."

The statement called for the immediate release of Chow and added that "peaceful advocacy for human rights does not constitute a crime."

Chow was the recipient of Franco-German Human Rights Award in 2023.

Taiwan also called on China to "stop political persecution."

Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council, which oversees the island's China policy, expressed "deep regret and sorrow" and called on the Chinese Communist Party and Hong Kong government to "immediately release those detained in this case."

What else do we know about charges against the pro-democracy activists?

Hong Kong judicial officials claimed the pair "incited other persons to organize, plan, commit or participate in acts by unlawful means with a view to subverting the state power."

Prosecutors had argued they "endanger(ed) national security in the name of human rights."

Public commemorations of the deadly Tiananmen crackdown, when Beijing sent troops and tanks to crush protests calling for political reform in and around the capital's Tiananmen Square, have been effectively banned since the 2020 imposition of the national security law on Hong Kong.

The controversial law came after Hong Kong's massive anti-government, pro-democracy protests in 2019.