Hong Kong Went from Zero to 29 Terrorism Arrests in 18 Months
Cases surge as China extends hard-line approach risking finance hub’s safe reputation
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When Louis Lo was arrested at the height of Hong Kong’s 2019 pro-democracy protests and accused of masterminding the city’s largest bomb plot in decades, authorities chose not to prosecute him for terrorism.
At that time, the city had never charged anyone with trying to carry out a terrorist act under a law passed years earlier for just that purpose. Instead, the independence activist, who the trial judge said sought to create “terror among citizens,” was charged with keeping explosives. He pleaded guilty in April and was sentenced to 12 years in prison.