Eight activists jailed in Shenzhen to return to Hong Kong

TIL Desk/World/Hong Kong/ Eight activists detained at sea as they sought to flee Hong Kong by speedboat have finished serving jail sentences in China and are expected to be handed over Monday to authorities in Hong Kong, where they may face further prosecution.

The group, which had been jailed in the southern city of Shenzhen, will return to Hong Kong in batches. Pro-democracy activist Andy Li was the first of the group to be returned to the city after serving a seven-month prison sentence, according to local newspaper, which cited an anonymous police source.

The eight are part of a larger group of 12 Hong Kong pro-democracy activists and protesters who were detained at sea in August last year during an ill-fated attempt to reach self-ruled Taiwan. They are believed to have feared prosecution in Hong Kong due to their involvement in anti-government protests that began in mid-2019.