Hong Kong's court refused Chow Hang-tung's attempt to quash a 2021 indictment accusing her and two other former alliance leaders of inciting subversion under the 2020 national security law. The government-appointed three-judge panel found the charge broad but not impermissibly vague and will issue a written opinion in January. The trio face trial on Jan. 22; earlier convictions for failing to provide information were overturned on appeal in March. Amnesty International criticised the ruling as an abuse of "national security" to curb free expression, while authorities say the law restored stability after 2019.
Hong Kong Court Rejects Bid to Dismiss Indictment of Tiananmen Vigil Organizer; Trial Set for Jan. 22
Hong Kong's court refused Chow Hang-tung's attempt to quash a 2021 indictment accusing her and two other former alliance leaders of inciting subversion under the 2020 national security law. The government-appointed three-judge panel found the charge broad but not impermissibly vague and will issue a written opinion in January. The trio face trial on Jan. 22; earlier convictions for failing to provide information were overturned on appeal in March. Amnesty International criticised the ruling as an abuse of "national security" to curb free expression, while authorities say the law restored stability after 2019.
11:49, 03.11.2025Politics
Court allows high-profile national security trial to proceed
A Hong Kong court on Monday rejected former Tiananmen vigil organiser Chow Hang-tung's bid to quash a 2021 indictment accusing her, Albert Ho and Lee Cheuk-yan of inciting subversion under the national security law. The decision keeps a landmark and politically sensitive case on track for a trial scheduled to begin on Jan. 22.
What happened in court
Chow, a barrister who is representing herself, argued that the indictment was impermissibly broad and vague because it did not identify a specific "unlawful means," which she said made the wording a potential "catch-all charge." Presiding Judge Alex Lee acknowledged the charge was wide-ranging but ruled it was not vague.
Prosecutor Ned Lai told the three-judge panel — a bench appointed by the government to hear the case — that "unlawful means" should be interpreted to include acts contrary to the Chinese constitution, which affirms the Communist Party's leadership as central to socialism with Chinese characteristics and bars actions that damage the socialist system. The panel dismissed Chow's application and said it would publish a written opinion in January.
Chow remained composed after the decision and smiled toward the public gallery as she left the courtroom.
Background
The charges arise from the activities of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which organised the city's annual memorial for the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown. The vigil, the only large-scale public commemoration in the territory for many years, was banned in 2020 amid COVID-19 restrictions. Authorities later opened an investigation into the alliance and accused it of acting as a foreign agent; the group denied the allegation and voted to disband in 2021.
Chow and two other core members were convicted in 2023 of failing to provide information to authorities and each received a 4½-month sentence; those convictions were overturned on appeal at Hong Kong's top court in March, a rare legal victory for pro-democracy activists.
The national security charge of inciting subversion, brought in 2021, carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. A trial on those charges is scheduled to open on Jan. 22.
Reactions
Fernando Cheung, spokesperson for Amnesty International Hong Kong Overseas, said the ruling demonstrated that authorities were "weaponising the overly broad concept of 'national security' to suppress freedom of expression with impunity," and called for the release of those detained for what he described as peaceful expression.
The Hong Kong government maintains that the national security law was necessary to restore stability following the mass protests of 2019.