Activist Joshua Wong Pleads Guilty to Collusion Charges

Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong pleaded guilty on Wednesday (02/09) to charges of colluding with foreign parties.

Wong, who has already served almost five years in prison on subversion charges and is due for release next year, now faces a potential sentence of up to life imprisonment.

Regarding the charges against Wong, he is accused of conspiring with fellow activist Nathan Law and other parties to solicit foreign nations, institutions, organisations, or individuals to impose sanctions or take other hostile actions against Hong Kong or China between July and November 2020.

Wong sat in the dock as the indictment was read before confirming his guilty plea, according to reports from AFP journalists inside the courtroom. He smiled and nodded after someone in the public gallery shouted, “Hang in there!”

Among those attending the trial were several Western diplomats.

As for who Joshua Wong is, he first gained widespread recognition in Hong Kong as a teenager in 2012, when he led protests against the introduction of national education in the city’s schools. In 2014, his name became even more prominent as one of the student leaders in the Occupy Hong Kong movement, where demonstrators occupied streets for 79 days while demanding the direct election of Hong Kong’s leader.

However, Wong’s efforts to mobilise international support for his protests angered Beijing, which labelled him a supporter of Hong Kong independence who had