A leading pro-democracy activist who helped organise Hong Kong’s long-running vigil marking the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown told a court on Friday that her group’s call for “ending one-party rule” was aimed at democratic reform, not at dismantling the Chinese Communist Party.
Chow Hang-tung, 40, a former leader of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, made the argument during proceedings under the sweeping national security law that has largely silenced organised dissent in the city.
She was charged with inciting subversion in September 2021 under the law Beijing imposed following massive anti-government protests in 2019. She was accused of inciting others to organise, plan or act through unlawful means with a view to subvert the state power.
Lee Cheuk-yan, another former group leader, also pleaded not guilty on Thursday to the charge that carries a maximum penalty of 10 years of imprisonment.
Hong Kong democracy advocates Lee Cheuk-yan, 68, Albert Ho, 74, and Chow Hang-tung, 40, all former leaders of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, are accused of “inciting subversion of state power”.
A closely watched national security trial involving them began on Thursday.
The case is among the most significant brought under the legislation, which carries a maximum sentence of 10 years in prison and has resulted in convictions in nearly every prosecution so far.
Prosecutors have centred their case on the alliance’s long-standing demand for “ending one-party rule”, arguing that the slogan amounted to a call to end the Communist Party’s leadership of China, an outcome they said would violate the constitution and had no lawful path.
Ms Chow, a barrister who is defending herself, countered the prosecution’s claim on Friday while appealing to the court to admit an expert’s evidence, standing outside the courtroom dock while presenting her argument.
“The alliance’s position is not to end the Chinese Communist Party’s leadership, but to end one-party dictatorship,” said Ms Chow, who smiled when supporters in the courtroom wished her well for her birthday on Saturday.
The court was also told that co-defendant Albert Ho had stated in 2018 that the demand was not intended to abolish the Communist Party, and that the party could retain power through fair elections. Mr Ho pleaded guilty on Thursday, a move that could lead to a lighter sentence.
🕯️Thank you, @jameswnaish for standing in solidarity with Chow Hang-tung, a free #HongKong and #HongKongers.
— The Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation (@thecfhk) January 22, 2026
Human rights barrister Chow Hang-tung is innocent of any crime but today goes on trial facing 10 years in #HK prison, solely for lighting #Tiananmenmassacre remembrance… https://t.co/SmFo73V5ih pic.twitter.com/kcoIVtGDwT
For 30 years, the Hong Kong Alliance organised the only large-scale public commemoration of the crackdown on the 1989 pro-democracy protests within China. The vigil in Hong Kong drew tens of thousands each year to remember the victims until authorities banned the event during the Covid-19 pandemic. The alliance also called for “building a democratic China”.
The group voted to disband in September 2021 after its leaders were prosecuted under the security law, which Beijing deemed necessary for the city’s stability following the protests.
After the pandemic, the former vigil site was occupied instead by a carnival organised by pro-Beijing groups on 4 June, the crackdown’s anniversary.
Analysts say the disappearance of the candlelight vigil has become a powerful symbol of shrinking civil liberties in the former British colony, which was handed back to China in 1997 and now operates as a “special administrative region”.
Despite a degree of autonomy signified by the designation, Beijing has increasingly made its presence known in the way it oversees the territory, while Hong Kong’s government said its law enforcement actions were evidence-based and strictly in accordance with the law.
Meanwhile, the human rights organisations and overseas observers have criticised the case as emblematic of Hong Kong’s shrinking civic space.
“This case is not about national security – it is about rewriting history and punishing those who refuse to forget the victims of the Tiananmen crackdown,” said Sarah Brooks, Amnesty International’s deputy regional director for Asia was quoted as saying by Reuters.
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