2nd September 2026 – (Hong Kong) Joshua Wong Chi‑fung, 29, pleaded guilty in the High Court to one count of conspiracy to collude with foreign or external forces, admitting that he and former lawmaker Nathan Law Kwun‑chung sought overseas assistance to advance a political agenda of self‑determination for Hong Kong. Mr Justice William Tam Yiu‑ho, noting the public interest in the case, directed prosecutors to read the full facts before mitigation and sentencing. The charge covers the period from 1st July to 23rd November 2020, alleging that Wong, in Hong Kong, conspired with Law and others to request foreign bodies to impose sanctions, blockades or other hostile acts against the People’s Republic of China and specific governments.
Prosecutors outlined a years‑long international outreach that began in 2016, when Wong and Law, then secretary general and founding chair of the now‑dissolved group Demosisto, promoted the Hong Kong Human Rights and Democracy Act in the United States and met figures including then House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senator Marco Rubio. Their efforts continued into 2019 amid the protest movement, with testimony at a US congressional hearing and appeals in Germany, Italy and the United States for restrictions on weapons and crowd‑control equipment sales to Hong Kong police. After the national security law took effect on 30th June 2020, Demosisto disbanded and Law left the city, while Wong said publicly he would not renounce his stance and would keep drawing international attention to Hong Kong.
The court heard that Wong amplified a petition in July 2020 urging digital forensics companies, including Israel’s Cellebrite, to cease cooperation with Hong Kong police. Rights lawyer Eitay Mack and others subsequently pressed Israel’s authorities on exports, and in October 2020 Cellebrite announced a halt to product sales to customers in mainland China and Hong Kong. In a report posted the day before he was remanded on 23rd November 2020, Wong summarised planned advocacy after the law’s enactment, including open letters to multinational firms such as Sony and Apple and continued media commentary calling for overseas pressure.
Wong was arrested again on 6th June 2025 in connection with the collusion case. He is already serving four years and eight months for his role in the 2020 opposition primary, and has been in custody since 23rd November 2020. The prosecution argued that Wong and Law maintained a coordinated “international front” after the national security law’s introduction, seeking sanctions and other measures from foreign governments to influence Hong Kong affairs. Sentencing will follow after submissions on mitigation.