Hong Kong: Statement by the spokesperson on the sentencing of Joshua Wong

The European Union deplores today’s politically motivated sentencing of Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Joshua Wong to an exceptionally long prison term of 10 years under the Beijing-imposed National Security Law for ‘conspiring to commit foreign collusion’.

Wong was re-arrested in June 2025 while in prison and serving a 4 year and 8 months sentence after his conviction and sentencing in the ‘Hong Kong 47’ national security case. The timing of the charges and their political nature demonstrate a deterioration of the state of the rule of law in Hong Kong, and further weigh on Hong Kong’s international reputation.

Wong has been continuously held in custody since 2020 and was expected to be released in early 2027. The European Union calls for his immediate release. The EU urges Chinese and the Hong Kong authorities to respect international legal commitments under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the 1984 Sino-British Joint Declaration and maintain space for political pluralism in line with the ‘one country, two systems’ principle.