'No Occupy Protester Deserves To Be Punished'

A former student leader of the Occupy Movement, Lester Shum, said on Wednesday that four leaders of the 2014 protests did not deserve the prison terms handed down to them by the District Court, as Demosisto described the punishments as "appalling".

Shum argued that the 79-day protests were triggered by Beijing's decision to deny Hong Kong genuine democracy.

"I think if we were living under a just and democratic society, not a single protester of the Umbrella Movement would be prosecuted," he told RTHK.

"Because, what we're fighting for is very basic. Just getting back our basic rights, including our right to vote and to choose a chief executive and legislature on our own," he said.

Pro-democracy group Demosisto, meanwhile, said it was appalled by the sentences, which saw four of the nine Occupy leaders on trial jailed for between eight and 16 months.

The group's Joshua Wong said the sentences create a chilling effect and it will be increasingly difficult for anyone in Hong Kong to express their opinions or to disagree with government actions.

We stand in solidarity with our friends, and are grateful for their courage and sense of justice, Demosisto said, adding that "the fight is not over".

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