HONG KONG: Hong Kong democracy activist Joshua Wong was sentenced to 10 more years in jail on Thursday for colluding with foreign powers, the second time he has been penalised under the city’s national security law.
Wong, 30, is one of the most globally recognised faces of Hong Kong’s pro-democracy movement and has already spent almost six years behind bars. He is now not due for release until late 2036. The United States said his new sentence showed China would “go to extraordinary lengths to silence those who advocate for fundamental freedoms” in the city.
Britain, the European Union, Taiwan and Western human rights groups also condemned the move, while Beijing declared support for Hong Kong “cracking down on acts that endanger national security”. Wong was previously due to be freed in January after serving four years and eight months for subversion, under a national security law imposed on Hong Kong by the Chinese government.
But Hong Kong authorities used the same law to charge him again in June last year, accusing him of collusion with countries and entities to have sanctions imposed on the finance hub and China.
Published in Dawn, November 6th, 2026
