The verdict is expected in the trial of the organizers of Hong Kong's Tiananmen Square vigil, a case that has drawn international attention and raised concerns about the erosion of freedoms in the territory. This was reported by infohub.kz.
The defendants are prominent Hong Kong activists Lee Cheuk-yan and Chow Hang-tung, who led the group behind the city's annual vigils commemorating the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown. They were charged in 2021 with inciting subversion under Hong Kong's national security law.
Lee, 69, the former chair of the Hong Kong Alliance, testified that he brought donations from Hong Kongers to Beijing in late May 1989. He was at a hotel that night when troops opened fire, hearing the gunshots. He was detained and released on June 8 after being questioned and signing a letter of repentance.
Lee, a veteran labor activist and former lawmaker, denied holding enmity toward the Chinese Communist Party, saying his desire for reform stems from love for the people. "I have no enmity in my heart, only love," he said.
Chow, 41, began attending the vigils as a primary school student. A natural sciences graduate of the University of Cambridge, she later studied law and became a vice-chair of the alliance. In 2023, she was convicted for refusing to provide information about the group's operations and finances, but the conviction was overturned last year.
In 2024, Chow was among the first arrested under a newer national security law. Authorities alleged she used a Facebook page to publish seditious posts targeting a "sensitive date." Representing herself, she argued in her closing statement: "Speaking the truth has become inciting hatred, seeking justice has become exploiting suffering, accountability and limiting power have become violating the constitution, and returning power to the people has become subverting the state."