Hong Kong martial arts coach jailed 3 months for sedition over ‘radical’ comments attacking Communist Party and calling Taiwan independent country
- Danny Kong earlier admitted to publishing 20 offensive statements or articles on Facebook that magistrate says ‘far exceed ordinary criticisms’ of government
- ‘As long as the Communist Party is not obliterated, there will be no world peace,’ Kong was quoted as saying in one post
A martial arts coach has been jailed for three months in Hong Kong after he made offensive comments about Beijing and called Taiwan an independent country in a raft of social media posts that violated a colonial-era sedition law.
In handing down the sentence, Principal Magistrate Peter Law Tak-chuen said that despite the limited reach of Kong’s remarks and their lack of impact, an immediate custodial sentence was needed to safeguard national security.
“The views expressed are trenchant, radical and resentful. They are angry outbursts that far exceed ordinary criticisms, which are prone to galvanise like-minded people,” said Law, who was hand-picked by the city leader to oversee national security proceedings.
Kong, who runs a wing chun martial arts centre, pleaded guilty on Wednesday to committing acts with seditious intent over 20 offensive statements or articles published on Facebook between December 28 last year and June 26.