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Hong Kong clerk who insulted Chinese President Xi Jinping, called for downfall of Communist Party in online comments jailed for 4 months
- Chow Man-wai, 46, pleaded guilty to posting 49 offensive comments on LIHKG forum between March and September this year
- The defendant’s posts posed a challenge to Beijing’s ‘sovereignty and esteem’, chief magistrate says
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A Hong Kong court on Thursday sentenced a 46-year-old clerk to four months in prison for insulting Chinese President Xi Jinping and calling for the downfall of the Communist Party in a string of online comments.
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Chow Man-wai, a maritime company employee, pleaded guilty to violating a colonial-era sedition law by posting 49 offensive statements on Reddit-like forum LIHKG between March and September this year.
West Kowloon Court heard Chow had called for the death of Xi and his family while supporting international sanctions and plans to kill the Chinese leader.
Prosecutors argued the comments had provoked hatred towards Beijing and the Hong Kong government, as well as incited residents to break the law.
Comments accusing Beijing officials of corruption and perpetration of the 1989 Tiananmen Square “massacre” were also deemed offensive by police national security unit, which was in charge of Chow’s prosecution.
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The court also heard Chow was in favour of sanctions against the city’s prosecutors and their families.
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