A Hong Kong court is set to deliver a landmark verdict in the city’s biggest national security case

By KANIS LEUNG and ZEN SOO
Associated Press

HONG KONG (AP) — Some of Hong Kong’s best-known pro-democracy activists charged in the city’s biggest national security case will begin to hear their verdicts as early as Thursday. If convicted, they face up to life in prison under a Beijing-imposed law that has all but wiped out public dissent. The 16 defendants were among 47 democracy advocates who were prosecuted in 2021 over an unofficial primary election. They were accused of attempting to paralyze Hong Kong’s government and topple the city’s leader by securing the legislative majority necessary to indiscriminately veto budgets. Observers said their case will illustrate how the law is being used to crush the political opposition. But the Beijing and Hong Kong governments insist the law has helped bring back stability to the city.