Man is first to stand trial under Hong Kong's security law
A man accused of driving a motorcycle into police officers while carrying a Hong Kong protest flag is the first person to stand trial under the national security law implemented last year as China’s central government tightened control over the city
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Your support makes all the difference.A man accused of driving a motorcycle into police officers while carrying a Hong Kong protest flag became on Wednesday the first person to stand trial under the national security law implemented last year as China s central government tightened control over the city.
Tong Ying-kit was arrested on July 1, 2020, a day after the national security law took effect, for allegedly inciting session by driving into the crowd of officers while bearing a flag with the slogan “Liberate Hong Kong, the revolution of our times.” Several officers were knocked over and three sustained injuries.
The slogan was often chanted during anti-government demonstrations in 2019 by protesters demanding broader democratic freedoms.
China responded to the protests with a number of measures suppressing dissent, including the national security law, which criminalizes subversion, secession, terrorism and foreign collusion endangering national security. A number of protest leaders and other activists have been charged under the law.
The security law makes calls for Hong Kong independence illegal, and a government notice last July said the “Liberate Hong Kong, the revolution of our times” slogan connotes a call for independence and subversion of state power.
A court ruled last month that Tong will stand trial without a jury, a diversion from Hong Kong's common law traditions. Under the national security law, a panel of three judges can replace jurors and the city’s leader has the power to designate judges to hear such cases.
The law carries a maximum penalty of life in prison for serious offenders.
Tong is standing trial at the High Court where sentences are not capped.