Joshua Wong sentenced to 10 years in prison under Hong Kong national security law

Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong has been sentenced to 10 years in prison on Thursday, according to CNN. The activist, who once led the democracy movement in Hong Kong, faces a sentence that will keep him imprisoned until late 2036, when he turns 40. Wong was initially arrested in November 2020, at the age of 23, and has been in custody since then.

The charges against Wong stem from alleged conspiracies to seek foreign sanctions against China in 2020. In September that year, Wong pleaded guilty to conspiring with fellow activists to invite sanctions against China and Hong Kong. Prosecutors allege that Wong lobbied with interest groups, including former U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, as well as Saudi Arabia.

High Court Judge William Tam stated that the gravity of the crime and the need to express the community's abhorrence of the defendant's actions necessitated the sentence.

Wong's sentencing comes amid ongoing crackdowns on dissent following the introduction of Hong Kong's National Security Law (NSL) in 2020. Critics, such as Human Rights Watch, have condemned the harsh punishment as cruel and unjust. The organization called on foreign governments to denounce the sentence and impose targeted sanctions on officials responsible for Hong Kong's growing repression.