A Hong Kong court on Thursday found two editors of the now-defunct Stand News media outlet guilty of conspiring to publish seditious articles in a case that has drawn international scrutiny amid a security crackdown in the China-ruled city.
The two editors, Chung Pui-kuen and Patrick Lam, could be jailed for up to two years when they are sentenced on Sept. 26. Their conviction is the first for sedition against any journalist or editor since Hong Kong’s handover from Britain to China in 1997.
Critics, including the U.S. government, say their case reflects deteriorating media freedoms under a years-long national security crackdown in the China-ruled city.
Stand News, once Hong Kong’s leading online media with a mix of critical reportage and commentary, was raided by police in December 2021, and had its assets frozen, leading to its closure.
Chung, 54, Lam, 36, and the outlet’s parent company Best Pencil (Hong Kong) Ltd were all charged with conspiracy to publish seditious publications in connection with 17 news articles and commentaries between July 2020 and December 2021.
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