Pompeo Criticizes the CCP Over Imprisonment of Hongkongers Who Unsuccessfully Tried to Flee to Taiwan

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo (L) in Washington on Sept. 21, 2020, and the family members of the "Hong Kong 12" (R) in Hong Kong on Dec. 28, 2020. Patrick Semansky/Pool via REUTERS/Peter Parks/AFP via Getty Images

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo condemned the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on Dec. 31 over its decision to hand down prison sentences to 10 Hongkongers who were arrested at sea in August by China’s coast guard.

The 10 people, along with two teen minors, were trying to flee Hong Kong via mainland China in a boat to self-ruled Taiwan when they were arrested on Aug. 23. Two of the “Hong Kong 12” have been sentenced to three and two years prison by a Chinese court on Wednesday for “organizing others to illegally cross the border.”