Seven Jailed Over Banned Protest In 2019

The District Court on Wednesday sentenced seven activists to between 11 and 16 months in prison for their roles in a banned protest in 2019.

Former lawmakers Leung Kwok-hung, Cyd Ho, Albert Ho and Yeung Sum, as well as Raphael Wong and Avery Ng from the League of Social Democrats, and Figo Chan of the Civil Human Rights Front, had earlier pleaded guilty to organising or inciting others to join an unauthorised march on October 20 from Tsim Sha Tsui to the West Kowloon high-speed rail station.

Prosecutors said four of the defendants had urged people to join the march at a press conference on October 19 after the police had banned it, while six of them led the march on the day.

The court heard that thousands of people had taken part in the march during which roads were blocked, branches of Bank of China (Hong Kong) and MTR facilities vandalised and petrol bombs hurled at the Tsim Sha Tsui police station.

In sentencing, Judge Amanda Woodcock said while the Basic Law and the Bill of Rights guarantee people's freedom of assembly, procession and demonstration, these rights are not absolute and are subject to restrictions in the interests of public order and safety.

She said the common purpose of the march, as well as the "politics, beliefs, stance and opinions" of any of the defendants are irrelevant to sentencing.

Woodcock noted that Albert Ho had urged people to protest peacefully at the press conference the day before the march, while he also acknowledged that some "valiant protesters" may use violence.

She said the defence’s argument that the activists should not be blamed for the violence during the procession carried little weight when the defendants had openly acknowledged that it was likely going to happen.

None of them had taken any measures to prevent it from happening, she said, adding that the defendants were not blameless for the violence in the area that day.

The judge said an immediate jail term was the only appropriate sentencing option.

The court sentenced Chan, Leung, and Albert Ho to 16 months in jail, Cyd Ho and Wong to 14 months, Ng to 12 months and Yeung to 11 months.

But the judge noted that all of the defendants, except Wong, had been sentenced over their roles in three other protests in 2019.

She said taking into account the similar nature of the cases, the six defendants will serve their new sentences concurrently with the terms they are already serving.

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