HONG KONG—The first person charged under the national security law in Hong Kong pleaded not guilty as his trial began on Wednesday, almost a year after he was accused of driving his motorbike into officers at a rally while carrying a flag with a protest slogan.
The case of Tong Ying-kit is seen as a departure from Hong Kong’s common law traditions, as he was denied bail and a jury, and a test of the government’s claim that the slogan “Liberate Hong Kong! Revolution of our times” is secessionist.
