A Warning to Sovereignty-Minded Voters: Hong Kong Activist Handed 10-Year Sentence

Joshua Wong, a Hong Kong pro-democracy activist who rose to prominence as the face of the city's 2014 pro-democracy demonstrations, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison in a national security case. At 30 years old, Wong is the only activist in Hong Kong prosecuted twice under the national security law, according to The Guardian.

Wong had earlier pleaded guilty to "foreign collusion," according to The Guardian, submitting his plea in September. He was accused of working with exiled Hong Kong activist Nathan Law, according to The Guardian. The conviction was his second under the national security law, according to the same outlet.

Critics say the national security law "has been used to silence political opposition in the city," according to The Guardian. Wong has been imprisoned since 2020, according to The Guardian, and is among hundreds of Hongkongers detained under the national security law, according to BBC News.

For many sovereignty-minded voters, this case illustrates the cost of ceding legal authority to supranational or external frameworks — and the importance of maintaining national security laws that are not subject to outside review. Wong became the global face of Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement, according to Al Jazeera, but the sentence underscores that national sovereignty and law and order remain non-negotiable for those who prioritize them.