Journalists in Hong Kong convicted of "sedition" and spreading "illegal ideologies"

In Hong Kong, two journalists who supported democracy have been imprisoned for "sedition" and "illegal ideologies."

In August, Chung Pui-kuen, 55, and Patrick Lam, 36, were convicted of conspiring to publish seditious materials through their Stand News media outlet.

Stand News' former editor-in-chief, Chung, was sentenced to 21 months in prison.

Chung's successor, Lam, was initially sentenced to 14 months but had his sentence reduced due to factors such as his pre-trial service and health conditions.

Since the UK handed over Hong Kong to Chinese rule in 1997, the two men are the first journalists to be convicted of such crimes in Hong Kong.

Best Pencil, the publication's parent company, was also convicted.

District Court Judge Kwok Wai-kin stated that the three defendants were not engaged in authentic journalism, but rather taking part in what is referred to as resistance.

Beijing enacted a national security law in response to the 2019 protest movement in Hong Kong, which aimed to suppress pro-democracy voices across China.

The bill passed in March, known as the Safeguarding National Security Bill, imposes life imprisonment for treason and insurrection and also includes penalties for possession of treasonous publications with imprisonment.

"In his trial last year, Chung stated that there was no hidden agenda or other objectives that were not transparent, and that their main goal was to document important events with significant public interest."

In May, 14 pro-democracy activists in Hong Kong were also charged with national security offenses.

This report was contributed to by Jeffrey Clark of Planet Chronicle Digital and The Associated Press.