Hong Kong court tosses appeals of assembly verdicts

The Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal dismissed on Monday appeals by former media tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying and six former lawmakers who were seeking to overturn their convictions for participating in an unauthorized assembly during social unrest in 2019.

Apart from Lai, founder of the now-defunct tabloid Apple Daily, the other appellants were Lee Cheuk-yan, Margaret Ng Ngoi-yee, Leung Kwok-hung, Cyd Ho Sau-lan, Albert Ho Chun-yan and Martin Lee Chu-ming.

In 2021, the seven were convicted of organizing and taking part in a large-scale assembly at Victoria Park on Aug 18, 2019, which had been banned by police on security grounds.