Hong Kong pro-democracy figures given jail terms of up to 18 months
by Helen Davidson in Taipei from World news | The Guardian on (#5GNDB)
Media mogul Jimmy Lai and veteran activist Lee Cheuk-yan each sentenced to 12 months over protests
A court in Hong Kong has handed down a mixture of prison and suspended sentences to 10 of the territory's most prominent pro-democracy figures, including reformers, politicians and a media mogul, some veterans of the transition from British rule in the 1990s.
The prison sentences for organising or participating in an unauthorised assembly - traditionally a low-level offence attracting fines - are a highly symbolic blow to the pro-democracy movement, which has been targeted by authorities bent on removing all opposition to Beijing.
Continue reading...