20-Year-Old Student Activist Sentenced to 3 Years and 7 Months for Violating Hong Kong National Security Law

Hong Kong student activist Tony Cheng.
[Image source=EPA·Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-woo] Controversy is expanding both inside and outside Hong Kong as a 20-year-old student activist in Hong Kong has been sentenced to 3 years and 7 months in prison on charges including violation of the National Security Law. As Chinese authorities impose severe punishments on individuals related to Hong Kong separatism regardless of age or status, international criticism is expected to grow.

According to local media such as Ming Pao in Hong Kong on the 24th, the Hong Kong court sentenced Tony Cheung, a 20-year-old student activist, to 3 years and 7 months in prison on charges including violation of the National Security Law, attempts to split the country, and money laundering. He is known as the youngest person to receive a prison sentence for violating Hong Kong’s National Security Law.

Earlier, in July, a 24-year-old Hong Kong man who worked as a restaurant employee was sentenced to 9 years in prison on charges of terrorism and separatism, and earlier this month, a 31-year-old man who worked as a food delivery worker was sentenced to 5 years and 9 months in prison on separatism charges.

The Hong Kong prosecution applied separatism charges against Cheung, stating that as the leader of the student organization 'Haksaeng Dongwon (學生動源)', he posted messages promoting separatism on Facebook and organized related protests. Cheung’s defense lawyers requested leniency considering his young age and the influence of Hong Kong’s social atmosphere on him, but the request was denied.

The Hong Kong court pointed out that although Cheung did not make specific plans for separatism, his intent was clear, and that the crime of separatism is established even without the use of force.

Cheung was arrested last October at a coffee shop opposite the U.S. Consulate in Hong Kong by agents from the National Security Department of the Hong Kong Police, which handles the National Security Law. At that time, Hong Kong media reported that he planned to seek asylum at the U.S. Consulate.

Meanwhile, the Hong Kong National Security Law, enacted on June 30 last year, punishes four crimes?separatism, subversion of state power, terrorist activities, and collusion with foreign forces?with penalties up to life imprisonment. So far, over 150 people have been arrested on charges of violating the Hong Kong National Security Law, and many have been prosecuted.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.