Hong Kong Court Convicts Stand News Editors of Sedition in High-Profile Case

A Hong Kong court on Thursday convicted two editors from the now-defunct Stand News media outlet of conspiring to publish seditious articles. This case has attracted international attention amid an ongoing security crackdown in the city, which is under Chinese rule.

Chung Pui-kuen and Patrick Lam are the editors who could face up to two years in prison. This marks the first sedition conviction against journalists or editors in Hong Kong since the city’s handover from Britain to China in 1997. Critics including the U.S. government argue that the case highlights the erosion of media freedoms under the prolonged national security crackdown in Hong Kong.

Stand News, once a prominent online media platform in Hong Kong known for its critical reporting and commentary, was raided by police in December 2021. The raid resulted in the freezing of its assets and the outlet’s closure shortly after.

Chung(54), Lam (36), and the outlet’s parent company, Best Pencil (Hong Kong) Ltd, were charged with conspiracy to publish seditious content related to 17 articles and commentaries published between July 2020 and December 2021. Both editors had pleaded not guilty. Only Chung was present in court for the verdict, with no explanation provided for Lam’s absence.

District Court Judge Kwok Wai-kin stated in the judgment summary that the court had considered “the potential danger to national security” and the circumstances at the time in determining the ruling on seditious intent.