{
  "id": 6691887,
  "title": "Tiananmen vigil leaders jailed up to 7 years, as group is fined HK$1.5 million",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/tiananmen-vigil-leaders-jailed-up-to-7-years-as-group-is-fined-hk-1-5-6691887",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-09-11T02:31:34.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "South China Morning Post",
    "slug": "south-china-morning-post",
    "url": "https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/law-and-crime/article/3367127/hong-kong-vigil-leaders-jailed-7-years-group-fined-hk15-million"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Three former leaders of the disbanded Hong Kong alliance responsible for the annual Tiananmen Square vigil have been sentenced to prison terms of up to seven years and three months each, under the national security law for inciting subversion. The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China (HKA) was fined HK$1.5 million. At the West Kowloon Court, three High Court judges found the former alliance leaders guilty of inciting public hatred towards the Chinese Communist Party by comparing Beijing's 1989 crackdown on pro-democracy protesters to local authorities' suppression of the 2019 anti-government protests. Former chairman Lee Cheuk-yan received a seven-year and seven-month sentence, former vice-chairwoman Chow Hang-tung received seven years and three months, and former vice-chairman Albert Ho Chun-yan, who admitted guilt before the trial, was sentenced to five years and two months. The alliance, established after the 1989 crackdown, organized annual candlelight vigils in Hong Kong's Victoria Park to commemorate the event and demand accountability and democratic reforms across the border. It was the only large-scale commemoration held on Chinese soil. Police banned the vigil in 2020 due to Covid-19, and again in 2021. Inciting subversion can lead to a maximum of ten years in prison under Hong Kong's national security law.",
  "summary": "Three former leaders of the now-disbanded alliance behind Hong Kong’s annual Tiananmen Square vigil have been sentenced to up to seven years and three months in jail under the national security law for inciting subversion by calling for an end to “one-party dictatorship” in mainland China. Three High Court judges on Friday also imposed a HK$1.5 million fine on the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 8,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "The Sydney Morning Herald",
        "title": "A giant Mao looms over Hong Kong. Welcome to 2030",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/a-giant-mao-looms-over-hong-kong-welcome-to-2030",
        "published": "2026-09-11T01:11:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "The Age",
        "title": "A giant Mao looms over Hong Kong. Welcome to 2030",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/a-giant-mao-looms-over-hong-kong-welcome-to-2030-6678975",
        "published": "2026-09-11T01:11:00.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Hong Kong Free Press",
        "title": "Hong Kong Tiananmen vigil activists sentenced up to 7 years 3 months for inciting subversion",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/hong-kong-tiananmen-vigil-activists-sentenced-up-to-7-years-3-months",
        "published": "2026-09-11T02:20:26.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "South China Morning Post - Hong Kong",
        "title": "Tiananmen vigil leaders jailed up to 7 years, as group is fined HK$1.5 million",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/tiananmen-vigil-leaders-jailed-up-to-7-years-as-group-is-fined-hk-1-5",
        "published": "2026-09-11T02:31:34.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Le Monde English",
        "title": "Hong Kong court sentences Tiananmen vigil activists up to seven years",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/hong-kong-court-sentences-tiananmen-vigil-activists-up-to-seven-years",
        "published": "2026-09-11T06:37:24.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Al Jazeera",
        "title": "Hong Kong court hands stiff jail sentences to Tiananmen vigil activists",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/hong-kong-court-hands-stiff-jail-sentences-to-tiananmen-vigil",
        "published": "2026-09-11T08:00:28.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "DW English (Top Stories)",
        "title": "Hong Kong Tiananmen activists jailed for up to 7 years",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/11/hong-kong-tiananmen-activists-jailed-for-up-to-7-years",
        "published": "2026-09-11T08:40:00.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}