Hong Kong Activist Joshua Wong Sentenced to 10 Years for Collusion With Foreign Forces
Wong, 30, had been expected to go free in January 2027. The judge started at 13 years and cut it for his guilty plea.
Joshua Wong, the 30-year-old activist who became the face of Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement, was sentenced Thursday to 10 years in prison for conspiracy to collude with foreign forces under the Beijing-imposed national security law, the Associated Press reported via NPR.
It is Wong's second conviction under the law. He pleaded guilty in September. He is already serving four years and eight months in the city's largest national security case, tied to an unofficial primary election, and had been expected to be released in January 2027.
The sentence
Judge William Tam called the offense grave and rejected arguments that Wong's role was limited. He said he considered 13 years as a starting point and reduced it for the guilty plea. The two sentences may run concurrently; Wong has about two months left on the first.
Prosecutors alleged Wong and activist Nathan Law agreed around 2016 to lobby internationally for democratic self-determination, and cited meetings with U.S. politicians including Nancy Pelosi and Marco Rubio. After the law took effect, prosecutors said, Wong used foreign media and social media to support calls for sanctions against China and Hong Kong.
Reaction
Wong looked calm and thanked supporters as he left court. "NSL charges can be repeatedly weaponized to keep a specific political prisoner in jail," said Eric Lai of the Georgetown Center for Asian Law. Beijing views Wong as an anti-China figure supporting independence, and Hong Kong authorities say the law is crucial for stability and enforcement is evidence-based.
His lawyer, Derek Chan, had asked for a sentence that would give Wong some hope, saying he wants to care for his parents after release.
Additional reporting
Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong sentenced to 10 years in prison Wong was sentenced for his second conviction under a Beijing-imposed national security law, in a case that critics say reflects the crackdown on the city's once-thriving pro-democracy movement. Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong sentenced to 10 years in prison
FILE - Hong Kong teenage student leader Joshua Wong, left, stands in front of yellow umbrellas outside a magistrates' court in Hong Kong, on Sept. 2, 2015. HONG KONG — Prominent Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong was sentenced to 10 years in prison Thursday for his second conviction under a Beijing-imposed national security law, in a case that critics say reflects the crackdown on the city's once-thriving pro-democracy movement.
Wong was charged in 2025 with conspiracy to collude with foreign forces to endanger national security under the law. In September, he pleaded guilty to the offense, a move that can typically reduce the sentence. The 30-year-old is already serving a four-year, eight-month prison term for the city's biggest national security case linked to an unofficial primary after entering a guilty plea in that case. Before being prosecuted for the collusion-related charge, Wong had been expected to be freed in January 2027.
Judge William Tam said during the sentencing hearing that Wong's offense was of a grave nature and rejected that his role was limited. He also said he considered a 13-year prison sentence as a starting point but reduced it because of Wong's guilty plea. Wong looked calm and thanked his supporters before leaving the court. His supporters waved to him and Tiffany Chin, a former member of the now-disbanded Scholarism, once led by Wong, was in tears.
The judge said Wong could serve his two prison sentences concurrently. Wong only has about two months left on the sentence for his previous national security conviction. Resident ET Wong said that when Joshua Wong was just teenager, he possessed "big-picture thinking" that some adults might not even have. He walked a difficult path for Hong Kong's future, human rights and student movement, she said.
Hong Kong once had a freewheeling civil society marked by its vibrant protest and media scenes. But after an anti-government movement rocked the city in 2019, authorities reduced public choice in elections and arrested many leading activists. Some news outlets known for their reports critical of the government shut down, and dozens of civil society groups dissolved.
FILE - Pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong speaks to reporters at the Legislative Council building in Hong Kong, Nov. 28, 2019. Observers say Wong's sentencing shows the authorities' determination to keep prominent activists in prison for as long as possible, further chilling civic activism. But Beijing views Wong as an anti-China figure supporting Hong Kong independence, a stance that crosses its red line. Hong Kong authorities also said the security law is crucial for the city's stability following the 2019 protests, maintaining that the city's law enforcement actions were evidence-based.
The prosecution previously alleged that Wong and fellow activist Nathan Law had agreed in or around 2016 to lobby internationally to achieve their goal of democratic self-determination. It said that before the security law was introduced, the pair had been calling for sanctions and other adverse measures against Hong Kong and China. It pointed to his meetings with U.S. politicians like Nancy Pelosi and Marco Rubio in 2016 and 2019.
What is still unknown
It is not known whether Wong will appeal.
