Joshua Wong to Stay in Hong Kong Prison for Another 10 Years
A judge reduced a starting 13-year term for the 30-year-old activist after his guilty plea, extending his incarceration despite an upcoming release date.
By Lily Carter ·
Joshua Wong, a 30-year-old Hong Kong activist, will remain in custody for a decade following a Thursday sentencing. A court imposed a 10-year prison term for his second conviction under the national security law enacted by Beijing. The ruling extends his time behind bars significantly, as he is already serving a sentence for a previous charge related to an unofficial primary election.
The judge, William Tam, stated that the offense was grave and rejected arguments that Wong's role was limited. Tam explained that he considered a 13-year sentence as a starting point. However, he reduced the term because Wong pleaded guilty to the conspiracy charge in September. The conviction involves a claim that Wong colluded with foreign forces to endanger national security.
Wong was originally expected to be released in January 2027. He is currently serving a four-year, eight-month sentence for the city's largest national security case. That prior conviction stemmed from an unofficial primary election where he entered a guilty plea. The judge ruled that the two prison terms can be served concurrently. This decision means Wong has roughly two months left on his current sentence before the new term takes full effect.
The prosecution alleged that Wong and fellow activist Nathan Law agreed around 2016 to lobby internationally for democratic self-determination. They claimed the pair called for sanctions against Hong Kong and China before the security law was introduced. The case cited Wong's meetings with U.S. politicians Nancy Pelosi and Marco Rubio in 2016 and 2019. After the law's enactment, the prosecution said Law advanced their work abroad while Wong supported the effort from Hong Kong through media and social networks.
Wong's lawyer, Derek Chan, asked the court for a sentence that offered his client hope. Chan noted that Wong wants to care for his parents after his release. Friends described Wong as a dedicated student during his nearly six years in prison. They said he continued reading books, exercising, and teaching himself guitar while maturing in his political thinking.
Supporters reacted with mixed emotions outside the courtroom. Tiffany Chin, a former member of the disbanded Scholarism group led by Wong, was seen in tears. Other supporters waved to Wong as he left the building. Resident ET Wong, a supporter, recalled Wong's "big-picture thinking" when he was a teenager. She stated that in her heart, he should not have spent a single day in wrongful imprisonment.
Beijing views Wong as an anti-China figure who supports Hong Kong independence. Authorities maintain that the security law is necessary for stability following the 2019 protests. Eric Lai, a research fellow at the Georgetown Center for Asian Law, said the charges can be weaponized to keep specific political prisoners in jail. In September, a pro-Beijing newspaper criticized a 2017 Netflix documentary about Wong. The security bureau said it was taking follow-up action, yet the film climbed to the top of the popular chart in Hong Kong.
