Joshua Wong, face of Hong Kong's pro-democracy protests, jailed for 10 years
Joshua Wong, a prominent figure in Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for colluding with foreign forces under the national security law. Wong has been in custody for six years and was already serving time for previous subversion charges.
Why it matters
The sentencing marks a significant development in the ongoing crackdown on political dissent in Hong Kong and the enforcement of Beijing's national security legislation.
Image source, Getty Images Image caption, The 30-year-old was the face of Hong Kong's now-quashed democracy movement
Joshua Wong, once the face of Hong Kong's democracy movement, has been sentenced to 10 years in jail for colluding with foreign forces under the city's sweeping national security law.
Wong, 30, is among hundreds of campaigners and ordinary Hongkongers arrested under the law, which was imposed in 2020 following explosive pro-democracy protests against Beijing's growing control.
Critics say the far-reaching law has silenced dissent, but authorities argue that it is needed to maintain stability and deny it has weakened the city's cherished autonomy.
Wong, who has been in custody for the last six years, has already been imprisoned multiple times for his activism which started when he was a teen.
Silenced and erased, Hong Kong's decade of protest is now a defiant memory
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