Hong Kong 47: activist convicted of subversion says he’s ‘enthusiastic’ to serve state in leniency plea

A former Hong Kong district councillor awaiting sentence for conspiracy to subvert state power has sought leniency by pointing to his “continuous patriotic affiliation” and employment with a pro-Beijing think tank as evidence of his positive character.

A legal counsel for Michael Pang Cheuk-kei asked for a lighter sentence at West Kowloon Court on Wednesday, highlighting the defendant’s ignorance of the Beijing-decreed national security law.

She also said Pang had been making remedial efforts to “safeguard national security” after his arrest for his role in an unofficial legislative “primary” election in July 2020.

But the three presiding High Court judges said Pang’s submission generated more questions than answers about his motives for trying to undermine the government. His equivocal stance could instead indicate his opportunistic nature, they added.

Pang is among 45 opposition politicians and activists convicted in the city’s largest national security trial for trying to secure a controlling majority in the Legislative Council through the 2020 unofficial primary, in a bid to cast an indiscriminate vote against the government’s budget and force then leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor to step down.

The court found the former Southern District Council member guilty partly based on the “strong determination” he displayed to confront authorities, such as by describing them as the “enemy” and “tyranny” and calling for all-out resistance against the Chinese Communist Party during his election campaign.