Hong Kong court convicts Jimmy Lai and other pro-democracy activists over 2019 protest

A Hong Kong court has convicted pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai and eight other prominent opposition activists over their roles in an unauthorized assembly at the height of the 2019 protests.

The other defendants included "Hong Kong's father of democracy" Martin Lee and veteran pro-democracy figures Albert Ho and Lee Cheuk-yan. They were charged with organizing and taking part in a protest on Hong Kong Island on August 18, 2019, which had been banned by police. Among the nine defendants, all but ex-lawmakers Au Nok-hin and Leung Yiu-chung pleaded not guilty. On Thursday, judge Amanda Woodcock convicted the defendants, adding they will be sentenced at another date. The charges carry a maximum penalty of five years' imprisonment.