The ‘Hong Kong 47’ were arrested in 2021 after holding an unofficial election primary and have now been sentenced to between four and ten years in jail

A Hong Kong court has sentenced 45 pro-democracy activists to jail terms ranging from four to 10 years in the territory’s largest national security trial.

Benny Tai, a legal academic and activist, was sentenced to 10 years in jail on Tuesday over his role as a organiser of pre-election primaries which the court found was an attempt to cause a constitutional crisis. It is the longest sentence handed out so far under the city’s national security law.