Hong Kong woman given suspended jail term for reposting calls to boycott legislative polls

2026-03-02 - 05:16

A Hong Kong woman was given a suspended jail sentence for sharing online posts calling for a boycott of December’s “patriots only” legislative elections. The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). File photo: Kyle Lam/HKFP. Bonney Ma, 61, was sentenced on Wednesday to two months in prison, suspended for 18 months, after she pleaded guilty to one count of inciting others not to vote in the run-up to the legislative race on December 7, according to the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). The housewife was among three people prosecuted by the anti-graft watchdog in November after they shared social media posts by two overseas activists – Alan Keung and Tong Wai-hung – who called for a boycott of what they described as a “fake election.” Keung and Tong are wanted by the ICAC for inciting others not to vote, while Keung also has a HK$200,000 bounty on his head for a separate national security allegation. During the hearing last week, Magistrate Peter Yu said the case was serious because it concerned the elections, adding that any illegal acts relating to the polls would negatively affect Hong Kong. While Ma may have shared