A Hong Kong judge has rejected the bail application of a former lawmaker charged along with 46 other pro-democracy figures under the Beijing-imposed national security law.
Lam Cheuk-ting, a former Legislative Councillor from the Democratic Party who has been remanded in custody for more than 14 months awaiting trial, appeared in front of Judge Esther Toh at the High Court on Friday.
Lam was one of 47 pro-democracy figures charged with conspiracy to commit subversion over their participation in an unofficial legislative primary election held in July 2020. He was first denied bail last March, after a marathon four-day hearing.
Toh rejected Lam’s latest application for bail, saying that she was not confident that the democrat would not continue to commit acts that endangered national security.
Under court reporting restrictions, written and broadcast reports about bail proceedings are limited to only include the result of the proceeding, the name of the person applying for bail and their representation, and the offence concerned.
Lam, dressed in a grey suit and white shirt, waved to people sitting in the public gallery after the court session ended. Some in the public gallery waved back and shouted “Ah Ting, hang in there,” using a familiar nickname to address the ex-lawmaker.
The Beijing-imposed national security law criminalised subversion, sucession, collusion with foreign forces, and terrorist acts, which were broadly defined to include disruption to transport and other infrastructure.
Lam was additionally sentenced to four months in jail in January for disclosing the identity of a police officer who was under investigation by the Independent Commission Against Corruption.
The 47 democrats are set to appear in court on June 1 regarding the prosecution’s application to transfer their case to the High Court.
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