Guilty: Hong Kong student leader Joshua Wong and associates could face jail over protest that sparked 79-day Occupy turmoil
Ruling marks first court convictions for Wong, Nathan Law and Alex Chow
Three prominent student leaders who spearheaded the 2014 Occupy movement were convicted on Thursday over the storming of government headquarters – an incident that led to the blocking of key roads for 79 days.
Former Scholarism convenor Joshua Wong Chi-fung was found guilty at Eastern Court of unlawful assembly along with former Federation of Students secretary general Alex Chow Yong-kang, 25. Demosisto chairman Nathan Law Kwun-chung, 23, was convicted of inciting others to join an unlawful assembly.
Wong beat the incitement charge, and all three were released on bail. Their case marked the first criminal convictions of the student leaders who played a pivotal role in the civil disobedience movement for greater democracy after Beijing set a framework for political reform that was seen as too restrictive.
The trio will be sentenced on August 15, pending reports on the suitability of probation and community service orders.
The maximum penalty is a HK$5,000 fine and three years’ imprisonment.
Wong, currently Demosisto’s secretary general, remained defiant, and said they would seek legal advice on whether to appeal.
“We do not regret what we have done,” he said
Law was also unrepentant. “Because of our actions, the Umbrella Movement started, and we believe it is very important for Hong Kong,” he said. “We still think we did something right.”