What to know about the Tiananmen vigil organizers who are set to be sentenced in Hong Kong

HONG KONG (AP) — A Hong Kong court is set to sentence Friday three activists who for years organized vigils in remembrance of China’s 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, in a case that is widely seen as a barometer of the city’s freedoms as Beijing clamps down on dissent. Lee Cheuk-yan, Chow Hang-tung and Albert Ho face up to 10 years in prison after being convicted of inciting subversion earlier this year under a Beijing-imposed national security law. Hong Kong once had a vibrant civil society marked by massive protests and a freewheeling press scene.

But after a 2019 protest movement rocked the city, authorities reduced public choice in elections and prosecuted leaders of news outlets known for their critical reports of the government. Many leading activists were imprisoned under the security law, and dozens of civil society groups dissolved, including the alliance. Beijing says the law is necessary to maintain stability.

The sentences on Friday will be the latest high-profile penalties imposed under the security law. In February, former pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai was sentenced to 20 years in prison. Chow, who represented herself, said the verdict suggested pursuing democracy is a crime and she did not deserve even one day in prison.

The Hong Kong office of China’s foreign ministry insisted that Hong Kong is governed by the rule of law and that no one should be allowed to engage in unlawful activities under the pretext of “freedom of speech and press” in a statement responding to criticism of the verdict in the Tiananmen vigil organizers’ case by foreign governments. Critics say trial shows Hong Kong has changed The three defendants were leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which for three decades organized a Tiananmen vigil that was the only large-scale, public commemoration of the event in China. Hundreds and possibly thousands of people were killed as military tanks rolled into the center of Beijing and troops opened fire to end the student-led pro-democracy protests in the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown.

The annual vigil drew tens of thousands of people to Hong Kong’s Victoria Park every year for decades. But authorities banned it in 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic. The vigils symbolized the civil liberties that set Hong Kong apart from mainland China.

Urania Chiu, a lecturer in law at Oxford B… HONG KONG (AP) — Lee Cheuk-yan, Chow Hang-tung and Albert Ho are three prominent Hong Kong activists who led the group behind the city’s massive annual vigils commemorating the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown.