Tenzin Nyidon
DHARAMSHALA, Nov. 20: In a sweeping move that emphasises Beijing’s tightening grip on Hong Kong, 45 pro-democracy figures including activists, former high-profile lawmakers, councillors, journalists, and academics were sentenced on Tuesday to varying prison terms under the controversial national security law (NSL). This marks one of the largest mass sentences since the law’s implementation in 2020, aimed at curbing dissent and silencing opposition voices.
The convicted individuals had organised and participated in an unofficial “primary election” in July 2020, just weeks after Beijing imposed the NSL in response to widespread pro-democracy protests. Prosecutors accused the group of plotting to “subvert state power”, a charge punishable by up to life imprisonment under the law. While 45 were sentenced, two defendants were acquitted in May.
The so-called Hong Kong 47 included prominent activists like Joshua Wong, 28, a former student leader and symbol of the city’s pro-democracy movement, who received more than four years in prison. Legal scholar Benny Tai, 60, labeled by judges as the “mastermind” and “principal offender” of the alleged conspiracy, received the longest sentence of 10 years.
The court argued that their efforts to secure a legislative majority through the primary elections were intended to paralyse government operations, a claim that critics describe as a distortion of democratic processes.
Beijing defended the verdicts as lawful and necessary to safeguard national stability. However, the mass sentencing drew sharp rebukes from international human rights organisations and Western governments. Maya Wang, Associate China Director at Human Rights Watch, criticised the ruling, saying it reflects “how quickly Hong Kong’s civil liberties and judicial independence have collapsed in the past four years.”
The U.S. State Department condemned the sentencing of the 45 pro-democracy activists as “aggressively prosecuted,” calling for their immediate and unconditional release alongside other detained political prisoners. “In response, the Department of State is taking steps to impose new visa restrictions on multiple Hong Kong officials responsible for the implementation of the National Security Law (NSL), pursuant to Section 212(a)(3)(C) of the Immigration and Nationality Act,” the State Department announced. The U.S. government emphasised its commitment to holding Beijing accountable, stating, “We will continue to monitor the implementation of Hong Kong’s national security laws and promote accountability for human rights in the PRC and Hong Kong.”
Students for a Free Tibet (SFT), a global network of Tibetan youth activists headquartered in New York, issued a statement on Wednesday expressing solidarity with the 45 sentenced individuals. “The CCP’s weaponisation of vague legal terms to imprison activists for exercising their most basic human rights is a reality deeply familiar to Tibetans inside Tibet. The courage of #HongKong47 reminds human rights movements worldwide that the fight for freedom is interconnected and must persist in the face of oppression,” the statement read.
The National Security Law, enacted in 2020, has drastically reshaped Hong Kong’s political and civil landscape, cementing Beijing’s control over the city. Reports indicate that as of June 30 this year, 300 individuals, including journalists, opposition leaders, and activists, have been arrested under its broad and ambiguous provisions. Critics argue that the law’s vague definitions of offences such as “secession,” “subversion,” and “collusion with foreign forces” grant authorities sweeping powers to suppress dissent. This has led to the dismantling of Hong Kong’s vibrant civil society, with many media outlets forced to close and activists silenced or exiled.
The National Security Law has also been widely condemned as a mechanism for arbitrary enforcement and political persecution, eroding the freedoms and autonomy promised under the “One Country, Two Systems” framework. Observers warn that its continued use signals a bleak future for democracy and human rights in Hong Kong.
One Response
Tibetans who have put their faith in the “Middle Way” should explain to the rest of the Tibetan populace, how Tibet is going to succeed in achieving autonomy where Hong Kong has failed! This is a pertinent question. One cannot deny the events in Hong Kong has direct repercussion for the proposed autonomy that Tibetans are seeking. Many young Tibetans who are born in exile may not be aware of how Tibet and its Government was fooled and deceived in 1951. The communist Chinese forced the Tibetan delegation to sign the so called “17 point Treaty” on the dotted line. Soon, they reneged on it and so begin the great Tibetan revolt against Chinese occupation of Tibet in March 1959. The Dalai Lama had to flee the country and Tibet was plunged into unimaginable terror perpetrated by the Chinese communists. The bad faith of the Chinese communists is in full display in Hong Kong which was also promised greater autonomy under the label of “one country-two systems”. The idea was Hong Kong will retain its capitalist system while China was different with a communist system. Deng Xioping and Margret Thatcher signed the deal in Beijing in 1984 which came to be known as the Sino-British Declaration. It was an international treaty between two sovereign countries! Yet since 2019, Hong Kong has been wrecked by political turmoil just like Tibet in 1959 owing to the Chinese communists utter disregard for treaties signed by it. There has never been such persecution of the Tibetan people and the Hong Kong people in their entire history! Tibet was never subjugated by any country and remained independent through out its history and Hong Kong, though was under British colonial rule never experienced such ruthless suppression as it is now under communist China! Tibet is a vast prison where Tibetans are treated as subhumans and no Tibetan can go out of the country nor anyone can get into the country except the occasional CCP invited pro- China elements to propagate Chinese propaganda to the outside world. Tibetans can’t even travel freely inside the country! OCCUPIED TIBET IS A HELL HOLE OF CHINESE MILITARY JACKBOOT SUBJUGATION!
The Middle Way enthusiasts must explain how the 1951 Treaty debacle is not repeated. It must also explain what has happened to Hong Kong’s promise of autonomy and its dissipation with the promise of autonomy will not be repeated in the aftermath of such an agreement in future! Taking into account the shifty nature of the Chinese communist regime, no one in Dharamsala can ever give a plausible answer. The fact is history will repeat itself. For the sake of argument, let’s say, the Chinese come to the table as the CTA has been hoping for endless years and an agreement is reached. The Chinese communists will trample over the agreement exactly as they did with the 1951 Treaty between Tibet and China and the Joint Sino-British Declaration of 1984 concerning Hong Kong! The communist regime has no morals and is utterly untrustworthy. Therefore all the exercises will once again prove to be fruitless. As it were, there is no chance of a settling the Tibet issue by dialogue with the Chinese communists! By the way, this is not only my own take but many overseas Chinese held the same idea. During the first Overseas Chinese and Tibetan meeting in 2005 in Geneva, the Chinese delegates from western democracies told the gathering not to deal with the communists because they cannot be trusted! TIBETANS ARE THE SOVEREIGNS OF TIBET! We should never ever give up on the sovereignty of our nation. The conflict in Gaza and West Bank in West Asia is about sovereignty over Palestinian land. How many children, women and men are being killed (43,800) in thirteen months. They are starved to death. Their children are the deliberate targets of Israeli bombs and missiles but are they giving up on their land? The aboriginal people in Australia are demanding treaty with the federal Government concerning their sovereignity over their land since 45,000 years of their existence! The Māoris in New Zealand are fighting for the rights they accrued from the Treaty of Waitangi entitling the Māoris to enjoyment of land and natural resources. Just like the aboriginals of Australia claim they never ceded sovereignty to the British, the Māoris are claiming the same that they have not ceded sovereignty to the British in 1840 Waitangi treaty. When it comes to Tibet, the Dalai Lama has made it clear thus: Our history dating back more than two thousand years has been one of independence. AT NO TIME, SINCE THE FOUNDING OF OUR NATION IN 127 BC, HAVE WE TIBETANS CONCEDED OUR SOVEREIGNTY TO A FOREIGN POWER!!! So, we can see all indigenous nations have been forcibly colonised by European coloniser but Tibet is colonised by communist China! The colonial history is the same. While the Australian aboriginals and Maoris of New Zealand are fighting for their sovereignty after two hundred years, Tibetans have been fighting for only 65 years! The crux of the matter is WE SHOULD NEVER GIVE UP OUR SOVEREIGNTY! We should fight for it like the Palestinians, the Aboriginals of Australia and the Māoris of New Zealand who have never ceded their nation to the invaders! This is the only way to fight for our rights. The goal of our movement must change to independence. There is not a shred of hope for Tibetans to lead a dignified life under Chinese communist domination. We have seen it for the last seven decades. If we remain under Chinese rule, we are FOREVER ENSLAVED AND FINALLY PERISH UNDER THE CHINESE EXTERMINATION POLICY. The Chinese communist regime will fall because no regime remains for ever. Every regime from Nazi Germany, to the Soviet Union have all collapsed in the end and so shall the communist totalitarian regime in China!