‘6 years in jail has reshaped my view of life’: Joshua Wong sought leniency to be freed in his 30s, mitigation letter reveals

Jailed Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong has said in a mitigation letter submitted to court before his sentencing on Thursday that his six years in prison reshaped his outlook on life, asking for the utmost leniency so he could walk free in his thirties.

High Court judge William Tam sentenced the activist to 10 years’ imprisonment on Thursday after Wong pleaded guilty to conspiring to collude with foreign forces, his second conviction under a Beijing-imposed national security law.

The 30-year-old has been behind bars since late 2020, when he was 24. He was due to be released in early 2027 after completing a four-year, eight-month jail term for conspiracy to subvert state power in the landmark “Hong Kong 47” case, but was charged with foreign collusion in June last year.

In a Chinese-language mitigation letter obtained by HKFP, Wong said he had missed his university graduation ceremony and lost more than 2,000 days with his family.

“Unlike my peers born in the 1990s, I was unable to start a family of my own or enter the workforce. Instead, I could only watch the years pass inside a stark cell,” the letter reads.

Wong said that while in prison, he exercised regularly, read books, and learned new skills every day. He added that he was learning the guitar, preparing for the International English Language Testing System (IELTS), and taking multiple legal and business courses organised by local universities.

“I pledge to Your Honour that I will not allow myself to be defined by who I was before the age of 24… When the day comes that I step out of this cell, I pray that I will have washed away the naivety of 24, moving forward with a mature mind, enriched knowledge, and a healthy body,” Wong said in the letter.

The activist also said he hoped to care for his elderly parents and give back to society upon his release.

“My experience of imprisonment under the National Security Law has not made me resistant to gaining a deeper understanding of China. On the contrary, it drove me to read extensively, draw wisdom from the past to reflect on the present… I hope to apply my professional skills to contribute to the socio-economic development of our society in full compliance with the law.”

‘Overwhelming’ situation

Wong was accused of conspiring with self-exiled activist Nathan Law and other unnamed individuals after the Beijing-imposed national security law came into effect in June 2020 to request that foreign countries impose sanctions and blockades, or engage in other hostile activities, directed against the governments of Hong Kong and mainland China.

During the 2019 protests and unrest, many protesters campaigned internationally to gather support from Western countries and pressure Hong Kong and Beijing authorities to meet their demands.

Wong said in his mitigation letter that once the national security law came into effect, he realised that calling for foreign sanctions was unlawful and he “promptly ceased all such statements and conduct.”

“However, as the law suddenly came into force, the situation was overwhelming. I attempted to adjust my words and actions amid confusion, yet my legal judgment was not thorough and I was not in a clear mind, leaving me unable to properly determine the legal boundaries for every single act,” Wong said.

“At the time, I believed that reposting publications by others, or urging foreign enterprises on commercial grounds to halt cooperation with police, differed from directly calling for sanctions,” he said, adding: “With respect to all statements I made and posts I published, I admit them in their entirety and accept full responsibility.”

Protests erupted in June 2019 over a since-axed extradition bill. They escalated into sometimes violent displays of dissent against police behaviour, amid calls for democracy and anger over Beijing’s encroachment. Demonstrators demanded an independent probe into police conduct, amnesty for those arrested and a halt to the characterisation of protests as “riots.” 

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