HONG KONG (AP) — Macao pro-democracy former lawmaker Au Kam San was sentenced to 12 1/2 years in prison Friday in the Chinese casino hub’s first national security case following a closed-door trial that raised concerns about fairness.
Au’s arrest last year was the first publicly known prosecution under Macao’s national security law since it was enacted in 2009.
The 69-year-old was accused of providing false information to anti-China organizations overseas to incite hatred against Beijing and the government in Macao.
Critics said his case reflected Beijing’s emphasis on security and intolerance of dissent, even though Macao’s pro-democracy movement has never been as influential as that in neighboring Hong Kong.
