The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government and the Legislative Council have strongly condemned malicious attacks on the sentencing of activist Joshua Wong Chi-fung by the city’s High Court, saying the sentencing is strictly in accordance with the law.

In separate statements, the HKSAR government and the legislature expressed strong dissatisfaction with, and resolute opposition to smears and slanders by various countries led by the United States and the West, anti-China media, overseas organizations and politicians.

Wong was jailed for 10 years on Thursday under the city’s National Security Law for   conspiracy to collude with a foreign country or external elements to endanger national security after the law’s promulgation on June 30, 2020. Two months and two days of the 10-year prison term will be served concurrently for another offense in a separate case.

Wong – one of the founders of the now-disbanded Demosisto – is already serving a jail sentence for subversion. He had pleaded guilty in the High Court on Sept 2 this year to one count of conspiracy to commit collusion with foreign countries or external elements to endanger national security.

The HKSAR government said Wong had chosen to plead guilty after being given sufficient time to consider the prosecution’s evidence and having obtained legal advice, including from a Senior Counsel.

The entire case, including investigations, prosecution, mitigation hearings and sentencing, had been conducted fairly and justly in accordance with the principles of the rule of law consistently adhered to under the SAR’s common law system, a government spokesman said, adding that Wong also enjoys the right to appeal against his sentence under the law.

Pointing out that the court had stressed that the National Security Law of the HKSAR does not have retrospective effect and that Wong was not punished for his pre-NSL acts or activities, nor for his political ideology, the spokesman said he was convicted solely on the basis that he had persisted, after the promulgation of the NSL, in his conspiracy with others to commit wrongful acts endangering national security.

The court had found that Wong and absconder Law Kwun-chung adapted their roles because they were fully aware that after the NSL’s enactment, it was unlawful to collude with foreign countries or external elements to endanger national security, the spokesman said.

It was manifest that Wong knowingly breached the law, and again highlighted that he pleaded guilty to the charge and the substance of the offense, including that he conspired with Law and others to solicit foreign countries or external elements, including the US, to impose sanctions against, blockade or engage in other hostile activities against the People’s Republic of China and the HKSAR, and their officials.

These acts constituted extremely serious offenses that not only severely undermined national sovereignty, security, and development interests, but also directly prejudiced the well-being of the general public and the stability of society, the court said.A LegCo spokesperson denounced the untruthful remarks made by Western countries, organizations and anti-China media as entirely political manipulation aimed at confusing the public and misleading the Hong Kong public, as well as the international community.

Pointing out that Wong had pleaded guilty to the charge and the relevant facts of the offense, the spokesperson said some external forces with ulterior motives have disregarded the facts and evidence, and used the case to wantonly attack the HKSAR’s work in safeguarding national security, human rights, freedom and the rule of law, and even demanded Wong’s  unconditional release and withdrawal of the charges against him.

This is a serious undermining of the rule of law, the spokesperson said.

Reiterating that it’s an inherent duty of the HKSAR, including LegCo, to firmly safeguard national security, the spokesperson urged Western countries, anti-China media, overseas organizations and politicians to squarely face the serious nature and objective facts of cases endangering national security in Hong Kong, and immediately cease interfering in the internal affairs of China and the HKSAR.