“This can by no means be endured. This evil act not only breaches the Crimes Ordinance of Hong Kong, but also breaches the Hong Kong national security law, and it must be punished severely.”

The liaison office, for its part, said the recent threats “blatantly undermined order and the rule of law, and dealt a huge blow to the interests of the public, while allegedly crossing the legal bottom line”.

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It also noted the Department of Justice and other legal bodies had already spoken out. The city’s Bar Association and Law Society, the regulating bodies for barristers and solicitors, respectively, had warned the threats against District Court judge Amanda Woodcock constituted attacks on judicial independence.

“We resolutely support the Hong Kong government and police in taking decisive law enforcement actions and solving the case as soon as possible, heavily punishing those lawbreakers and upholding law and order in Hong Kong,” the liaison office said.

Eight of the defendants, including the already jailed Lai, founder of the Apple Daily tabloid, were imprisoned for between 14 and 18 months, while two others received suspended sentences of 14 months.

They all pleaded guilty to various charges over their roles in an unlawful National Day protest on October 1, 2019.

The liaison office’s spokesman said the “radical” defendants had received the punishments they deserved, and that society should give judges respect for their “fearless, impartial, selfless and undeceitful” spirit.

“Their safety has to be forcefully protected,” he added.

The liaison office also pointed to Hong Kong’s leading reputation for rule of law, calling it the “bedrock” of the city’s long-term prosperity.

Last year, the World Justice Project, a United States-based independent body, ranked Hong Kong 16th in the world in its Rule of Law Index, and fifth in the East Asia and Pacific region, behind New Zealand, Australia, Singapore and Japan. Mainland China ranked 88th overall.

Condemning the threats against Woodcock on Saturday, a Bar Association spokesman said judges had to be able to carry out their duties free from any interference.

“Any threat made with intent to frighten or to put pressure on a judicial officer to decide cases one way or another, is a serious assault on judicial independence,” it said, adding that it condemned the threats in the “strongest possible terms”.

Law Society president Melissa Kaye Pang also condemned the threats as she called on authorities to urgently pursue the case.

“Judicial intimidation is not only a serious criminal offence, but also an abhorrent threat to judicial independence and the rule of law,” she said.

A Department of Justice spokesman, meanwhile, said the government would not tolerate threats against judges. A spokesman for the judiciary said it would not comment on individual cases, but stressed that any undue influence targeting judges should be condemned.

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In December last year, Chief Magistrate Victor So Wai-tak – one of six magistrates hand-picked by city leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor to adjudicate cases relating to the national security law – received a bomb threat after denying Lai bail in a separate subversion case. The liaison office at the time also condemned those threats.

The judiciary has become a focal point for resentments on both sides of the political spectrum since the city’s polarising 2019 protests, with some accusing judges of being either too harsh or too lenient on those arrested in relation to the unrest, depending on their leanings.

Judges were the subject of more than 5,000 complaints last year, though most had nothing to do with their conduct, and instead voiced disapproval at various court decisions.