Hong Kong protester who was given community service for desecrating national flag gets 20 days in jail
- Prosecutors had asked the Court of Appeal to review the case, arguing that community service for Law Man-chung was ‘manifestly inadequate’
- Judges conclude that Magistrate Li Chi-ho had ‘erred in principle’ by giving a community service sentence as he did not watch the footage of the incident
The prosecutors had asked the Court of Appeal to review the first case of flag desecration arising from the protests and demanded a jail term, arguing that community service was “manifestly inadequate” after it sparked criticisms from a former city leader and the Chinese Communist Party’s mouthpiece.
The court on Friday observed that Law Man-chung, 21, had committed a very serious offence that gravely undermined the dignity of the state and agreed that a deterrent sentence in the form of immediate imprisonment was the only appropriate option even if he was a first-time offender suitable for community service.
But the judges did not find a need to lay down new sentencing guidelines as requested by the prosecutors, as they observed that the crime could be committed in many ways and the Court of Final Appeal has already provided authoritative views on what ought to be considered.
These included the desecration caused; the time, place and circumstances surrounding the offence; and questions of whether the defendant had planned the acts or carried them out as part of a joint enterprise with others.
