HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Agnes Chow was released from prison on Saturday after serving nearly seven months for her role in an unauthorised assembly during the city’s 2019 anti-government protests.
The 24-year-old activist had been convicted together with her long-time activist colleague Joshua Wong for their involvement in an illegal rally near police headquarters in the Chinese-ruled city.
Chow, along with Wong and Nathan Law, who has since been given asylum in Britain, came to prominence as teenage activists during the 2014 “Umbrella” protests which demanded universal suffrage.
The three founded the democracy group Demosisto in 2016, which dissolved hours after Beijing passed a contentious national security law for the city last year amid fears it could be targeted under the legislation.
She was arrested last year also on suspicion of “colluding with foreign forces” under the security law has not faced any charges.
Fluent in Japanese, Chow has a sizable following in Japan, particularly on social media and had travelled to the country frequently before her arrest. She often tweeted in Japanese and has been dubbed the “goddess of democracy” by Japan’s media.
(Reporting by Jessie Pang; Editing by Scott Murdoch and William Mallard)
