Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for colluding with foreign forces under the city's national security law, extending his detention in a case that has drawn renewed attention to the crackdown on dissent in the Chinese territory.
The 30-year-old activist, who became one of the most recognisable faces of Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement, received the sentence on Thursday after admitting to charges linked to efforts to lobby foreign governments to impose sanctions and other measures against Beijing.
Wong is among hundreds of activists and ordinary residents who have been arrested under the national security legislation introduced in 2020 following months of widespread protests against Beijing's growing influence over Hong Kong.
He had already spent about six years in prison for his involvement in the democracy movement and was expected to be released in January next year. However, the latest sentence means he will remain behind bars for another decade.
The court ruled that two months and two days of the new 10-year sentence would run concurrently with his existing prison term.
During Thursday's court session, Wong arrived wearing a dark blue long-sleeved shirt, khaki trousers and black-rimmed glasses. He appeared slimmer than during his previous public appearances and acknowledged people seated in the public gallery before taking notes as the judge read the reasons for the sentence.
The hearing attracted considerable public attention, with dozens of people gathering outside the court. Some had reportedly queued for hours in the hope of securing seats inside, while a heavy police presence was maintained around the premises.
Prosecutors told the court that Wong had worked with other campaigners, including exiled activist Nathan Law, to encourage foreign governments to impose sanctions and blockades against China.
The alleged activities took place between July and late November 2020, during a period of heightened political tension following the introduction of the national security law.
Wong and Law were among the founders of Demosisto, a pro-democracy political party that was later disbanded. The prosecution argued that their activities amounted to collusion with foreign forces under the legislation.
The latest conviction adds to a long history of legal battles involving Wong, whose activism began while he was still a teenager. He became prominent during the 2014 Umbrella Movement and later emerged as a leading figure in the mass demonstrations that swept Hong Kong in 2019.
Wong's sentencing has also attracted criticism from human rights organisations and fellow activists.
Frances Hui, a friend and fellow campaigner now based in the United States, said she was heartbroken and outraged by the decision. She argued that the sentence went beyond Wong as an individual and represented a wider effort to erase the contribution of a generation that had campaigned for political change in Hong Kong.
Human Rights Watch also condemned the ruling, describing it as cruel and unjust. The organisation's Asia director, Elaine Pearson, said authorities appeared to be using multiple charges against prominent democracy campaigners to keep society subdued and limit international criticism.
Wong's 10-year sentence is among the harshest penalties handed down under the national security law. Former media tycoon Jimmy Lai received a 20-year prison sentence for colluding with foreign forces, the longest punishment imposed under the controversial legislation so far.
The latest ruling further highlights the shrinking space for political opposition in Hong Kong, where several prominent activists have been jailed, gone into exile or withdrawn from public political activity since the introduction of the law.
For Wong, who once represented the hopes of many young Hongkongers seeking greater democratic freedoms, the sentence means another decade behind bars, despite his earlier expectation of being released early next year.
