Two convicted of organizing the illegal border crossing were sentenced to two and three years in prison respectively. The other eight were convicted of participating in the border crossing and all received seven-month sentences. According to the Yantian People’s Court, all ten have pleaded guilty. All the accused also received fines ranging from $ 1,500 to $ 3,000.
Earlier Wednesday, China handed over two suspects under the age of 18 who were also on the boat to Hong Kong police. Authorities in the southern city of Shenzhen said they had admitted crossing the border illegally, but that they had not been charged.
All 12 were detained for more than 100 days before the trial in Shenzhen this week, as their parents and politicians in Hong Kong, the United States and the United Kingdom put pressure on him to be released. A group representing the families of the accused said their loved ones were abused in Chinese custody and denied access to their lawyers.
Police and prosecutors in Shenzhen had earlier denied allegations of ill-treatment, claiming the 12 had access to legal advice, although the practice in mainland China was to deny the accused their lawyer of choice by appointing a government-elected lawyer. the past is well documented.
On Monday, a State Department spokesman urged Beijing to release the 12 and allow them to leave the country, adding that their “so-called ‘crime’ was to flee tyranny.”
“The spokesman said that the treatment of these twelve individuals, some of whom were minors, was appalling by the VRC authorities.” “Beijing authorities continue their campaign to eradicate the remaining rights and freedoms of the people of Hong Kong, and their government system falsely equates party decision with the rule of law.”
The plight of the 12 activists has attracted much attention, both in Hong Kong and overseas, marking the deteriorating political freedoms and climate of the city since the adoption of a new national security law earlier this year. The law – imposed on Beijing by the city, which bypasses the Hong Kong semi-democratic legislature – has criminalized secession, undermining and collusion with foreign powers, and has already had a major, cold impact on politics and debate.
Chung reportedly tried to flee the city in October by seeking asylum at the US consulate, but was turned down.
Escape routes have become increasingly stringent this year and are exacerbated by closures and closures around the world as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. What was a viable, albeit risky, sea route to Taiwan was shut down after the Chinese Coast Guard made it clear that they were monitoring the waters around the city.
Carrie Lam, the city’s appointed chief executive in Beijing, refuted any suggestion that the Hong Kong government was aware of the matter before the Twelve were arrested.
The refugees “chose to flee and in the course of the flight they entered another jurisdiction and committed a crime of entering another place illegally,” she said in October. “They have to face the legal consequences in that jurisdiction. It’s as simple and straightforward as that.”
The potential to face prosecution in China has been a major source of opposition to a proposed extradition bill that began with protests last year, and the fate of the twelve appears to be much of a concern in Hong Kong. The activists were allegedly denied access to proper legal representation and little information was provided about their condition.
Chinese courts – along with prosecutors and police – are under the supervision of the powerful Central Commission on Political and Legal Affairs of the Chinese Communist Party and its local branches.
In a statement, Yamini Mishra, regional director of Asia and the Pacific, of Amnesty International, said the sentences “resolved after an unfair trial expose the dangers posed to anyone under the Chinese criminal system.”
“The Chinese authorities have once again shown the world that political activists will not receive a fair trial,” she added.