Jailed Hong Kong activist gets new prison term over Tiananmen Square vigil

Hong Kong, May 6 (ANI): Prominent Hong Kong activist Joshua Wong was sentenced to serve 10 more months in prison on Thursday for joining last year's vigil to commemorate victims of the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown.
A court in Hong Kong last week had convicted four pro-democracy activists, including Wong, for taking part in a memorial ceremony commemorating the Tiananmen Square massacre victims, the South China Morning Post reported.
Wong is already serving a 13.5-month jail term in prison for taking part in a protest that took place outside a police station in June 2019.
These four pro-democracy activists are among 24 people facing the charges for participating in a vigil on June 4 last year, when residents defied a government ban on gathering in public and flocked to Victoria Park to commemorate the 1989 Tiananmen crackdown, NHK World reported.
Hong Kong police refused permission for the event, citing efforts to prevent the spread of the pandemic. Last Friday, these four activists pleaded guilty to the charges at their trial.
China is tightening its grip on Hong Kong by taking action against pro-democracy lawmakers, officials and activists. The protests erupted in June 2019 over the now-withdrawn extradition bill. The bill was deemed as an example of increasing Chinese influence in Hong Kong.
The opposition to the bill morphed into wider and often violent civil unrest. It eventually led to Beijing imposing a draconian National Security Law in Hong Kong last year. The law has been condemned by countries around the world and rights activists. Since then, a number of former pro-democracy lawmakers have been arrested. (ANI)