Hong Kong activists convicted for Tiananmen vigils under national security law

Sun Sep 06 2026 00:23:30 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Two former leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance found guilty of inciting subversion over annual Tiananmen Square vigils under the national security law.

Hong Kong activists Lee Cheuk‑yan and Chow Hang‑tung have been convicted of inciting subversion after organising annual vigils commemorating the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown. The ruling, part of a broader crackdown on dissent under the national security law, could result in up to 10 years in prison. A third activist, former lawmaker Albert Ho, pleaded guilty earlier this year. The sentencing is set for a later date and highlights the growing restrictions on freedom of expression in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong activists convicted for Tiananmen vigils under national security law

Lee Cheuk‑yan, 69, and Chow Hang‑tung, 41, were found guilty of inciting others to subvert state power under Hong Kong’s national security law. The court concluded that the two activists’ efforts to organise annual commemorations for the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown endanger national security. They face a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and will be sentenced at a later date.

A former lawmaker, Albert Ho, 74, pleaded guilty in January and has been in custody since the charges were announced in 2021. The prosecutors described the activists as “endangering national security in the name of human rights”. Chow represented herself in court and argued that the very law under which she was charged was being tested.

Hong Kong was once one of the few places in Chinese territory where people could assemble to mark the Tiananmen crackdown. Authorities banned the vigils in 2020 citing Covid‑19 rules, and the gatherings have not resumed. The ban coincided with the formal enactment of the national security law, which criminalises a wide range of dissenting acts.

Lee and Chow were leading figures in the now‑defunct Hong Kong Alliance, founded in May 1989 to support student protests. The Alliance called for accountability, the release of dissidents, and democratic reform, and its leaders were sentenced in 2021 after prolonged legal battles.

Amnesty International has criticised the case for relying on broad and vague definitions of subversion, arguing that it undermines free expression and peaceful dissent.