Hong Kong hits back at Western ‘slander’ over verdict on Tiananmen vigil leaders

Hong Kong authorities have hit out at what they called “baseless slander and smearing” by Western countries over the conviction of the now-disbanded alliance behind the annual Tiananmen Square vigil and its leaders for inciting subversion, stressing the court’s verdict is “well-reasoned and sound”.

The government issued a strongly worded statement on Saturday after the closely-watched verdict on the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China a day earlier sparked a chorus of criticism from several Western countries and the United Nations over suppression of freedom.

Three High Court judges ruled that any attempt to overthrow or undermine the Communist Party of China’s leadership could constitute a subversion offence because the country’s constitution did not permit Western-style democracy.

They found the Hong Kong Alliance, its former chairman Lee Cheuk-yan and former vice-chairwoman Chow Hang-tung had incited public hatred towards the party by likening Beijing’s crackdown on protesters in 1989 to local authorities’ suppression of the 2019 anti-government demonstrations. The fourth defendant Albert Ho Chun-yan had earlier pleaded guilty.

A government spokesman said on Saturday it strongly condemned the “baseless slander and smearing” against the city by “various Western countries, anti-China media, organisations and politicians” over the case.

He defended the ruling of the court, citing the judges had also pointed out that the defendants had all along been hostile towards the Communist Party and the central government under its leadership.