Hong Kong activist and opposition leader Lam Cheuk Ting sentenced to prison for his role in the 2019 riots

MADRID Dec. 12 (EUROPA PRESS) –

A Hong Kong court sentenced Hong Kong activist and opposition activist Lam Cheuk Ting to prison this Thursday for his role in the unrest during the wave of anti-government protests recorded in 2019 in the Chinese special administrative region.

Lam, a 47-year-old former deputy and member of the Democratic Party, was arrested more than a year after the incidents that occurred during the night of July 21, 2019, when more than a hundred people broke into the Yuen Long subway station, in the northwest of the city, and beat several passengers with sticks as part of the protests.

Although he himself was attacked when he went to the scene to provide help, as he explained to the court, Judge Stanley Chan has ruled out that Lam went to the scene simply to mediate but to “take advantage.” politics” of what was happening. According to Chan, his mere presence fueled the clashes.

Lam has pleaded not guilty and has received the sentence impassively, amidst the cries of some of her relatives, who were in the room. Six other people have been convicted in the same case, although the sentence will not be known until later, as reported by the Hong Kong media.

These sentences come in the midst of an increase in measures against dissent, especially following the 2019 protests. Many of the dissidents who participated in them are already imprisoned or in exile, according to Human Rights defense organizations.