- Title: Three activists jailed in Hong Kong
- Date: 17th August 2017
- Summary: HONG KONG, CHINA (AUGUST 17, 2017) (REUTERS) GENERAL SECRETARY OF HONG KONG FEDERATION OF STUDENTS, LESTER SHUM, OUTSIDE COURT WITH SUPPORTERS AFTER VERDICT YELLOW UMBRELLA SHUM AND SUPPORTERS CHANTING (Cantonese): "PEOPLE DRIVE CHANGE. DISSENT DRIVES CHANGE." PRO-DEMOCRACY ACTIVIST JOSHUA WONG'S DEMOSISTO POLITICAL PARTY BANNER (SOUNDBITE) (English) GENERAL SECRETARY OF HONG KONG FEDERATION OF STUDENTS, LESTER SHUM, SAYING: "We are certainly very furious about the judgment and the sentencing. Because when Nathan, Alex and Joshua are fighting for our land, are fighting for our city, are fighting for Hong Kong, they are not for themselves, they are fighting for the values they believe in, they are giving up their freedom, their time and their future." SHUM STANDING WITH SUPPORTERS (SOUNDBITE) (English) GENERAL SECRETARY OF HONG KONG FEDERATION OF STUDENTS, LESTER SHUM, SAYING: "I think there is almost a certainty that more and more protesters will be sentenced to prison for not a short period of time. Normally, the protesters involved in the Umbrella Movement in 2014 but also in different protests including the Mong Kok incident in 2016, they are facing more serious charges and more serious sentencing." SHUM WITH SUPPORTERS (SOUNDBITE) (English) AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL CHINA RESEARCHER, WILLIAM NEE, SAYING: "I mean this will affect their future, because besides having to go to jail, obviously they won't be able to run for elected office for five years. I mean these are some of the most well-known people in the pro-democracy movement. So, I mean, that will have an effect on their future. It's also probably a signal from the Hong Kong government to restrict the right to freedom of expression and the right to peaceful assembly." VARIOUS EXTERIORS OF HIGH COURT HONG KONG AND CHINA FLAGS
- Embargoed: 31st August 2017 12:13
- Keywords: Joshua Wong verdict for pro-democracy activists jail term
- Location: HONG KONG, CHINA
- City: HONG KONG, CHINA
- Country: Hong Kong
- Topics: Crime/Law/Justice,Judicial Process/Court Cases/Court Decisions
- Reuters ID: LVA0016UJOAX1
- Aspect Ratio: 16:9
- Story Text: A Hong Kong appeals court jailed three leaders of the Chinese-ruled city's democracy movement for six to eight months on Thursday (August 17), dealing a blow to the youth-led push for universal suffrage and prompting accusations of political interference.
Joshua Wong, 20, Alex Chow, 26, and Nathan Law, 24, were sentenced last year to non-jail terms including community service for unlawful assembly, but Hong Kong's Department of Justice applied for a review, seeking imprisonment.
Wong was jailed for six months, Chow for seven months and Law for eight months. Law had been the city's youngest ever democratically elected legislator before he was stripped last month of his seat by a government-led lawsuit.
Outside the court on Thursday, the Hong Kong Federation of Students' General Secretary Lester Shum said they were "furious" about the sentencing, arguing that the three were "fighting for our land, are fighting for our city, are fighting for Hong Kong". They all plan to appeal.
In recent months, dozens of protesters, mostly young people, have been jailed for their roles in various protests, including a violent demonstration that the government called a riot in early 2016. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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