Hong Kong Denies Democracy Activists a Jury in Security Law Trial

MADRID, 17 Ago. (EUROPA PRESS) -

Hong Kong's new justice minister has ordered a bench trial for the 47 democracy activists facing life in prison under China's national security law.

The order, signed by Attorney General Paul Lam Tingkwok on Saturday, says the decision was made for reasons including "involvement of foreign factors" and "protection of the personal safety of jurors and their families." , the newspaper 'South China Morning Post' (SCMP) reported on Wednesday.

"If the trial is to be held by jury, there is a real risk that the proper administration of justice will be impaired," the document reads.

Thus, the trial will be held before a panel of three handpicked judges. This measure represents a break with the judicial tradition of common law in Hong Kong, explains the Bloomberg agency.

Lam recently stated in an interview with SCMP that a bench trial would not make the process any less fair.

These activists - some also former members of the Legislative Council - are accused of crimes of subversion, after organizing the primaries in July 2020 to elect candidates for Parliament.

More than 600,000 Hong Kongers went to the polls called by the pro-democracy political movement in July 2020, considered illegal by the authorities, whose results would serve to elect the candidates for the Legislative Council elections in September that were finally postponed due to the pandemic crisis.