BBC News Briefing

19 November, 2024

Jules Darmanin

Hello. Today we're reporting on the sentencing of 45 pro-democracy campaigners in Hong Kong. My colleagues explain how the recent security law is impacting opposition groups in the region. Meanwhile, our reporter Laura Gozzi is in Avignon, France, where Gisèle Pelicot and her ex-husband - who admitted drugging her and inviting at least 50 men to rape her - are giving their final statements in court. We're also reporting from Lebanon, Sweden, and Georgia.

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TOP OF THE AGENDA

Hong Kong jails 45 pro-democracy campaigners

A montage of portrait pictures of 45 Hong Kong activists. There is a majority of men and a several women, and a very diverse group in terms of age.

Forty-five people were found guilty of subversion and jailed. Two were acquitted. Credit: BBC

A Hong Kong court has sentenced 45 pro-democracy activists and lawmakers to years in jail for subversion after they planned to organise an unofficial primary for opposition candidates. Among the so-called Hong Kong 47 group, of which only two members were acquitted, leaders Benny Tai and Joshua Wong were handed prison sentences of 10 and four years respectively. Their trial marked the largest use of Hong Kong's harsh national security law (NSL) which China imposed on the territory shortly after the city’s explosive pro-democracy protests in 2019. Beijing and Hong Kong’s government argue that the law is necessary to maintain stability and deny it has weakened autonomy, but activists disagree. "Recently, we could not even organise a dinner party for members and friends," Emily Lau, a former chair of the Democratic Party of Hong Kong, told the BBC. In court, before leaving the dock, Joshua Wong shouted "I love Hong Kong!"

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Who are the Hong Kong 47? Some are veteran lawmakers, others were not involved in politics before the 2019 pro-democracy protests.

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The context: Here's what you need to know about Hong Kong's tough new security law.

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From June: A high-profile British judge who resigned from Hong Kong’s highest court last spring warned the city was “slowly becoming a totalitarian state”.

WORLD HEADLINES

In Lebanon: Efforts for a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah have intensified, with Lebanon's government expected to respond to a draft deal presented by the US.

Trump cabinet: The president-elect has nominated former congressman and Fox Business host Sean Duffy, one of the most vocal Trump defenders on the network, to lead the Department of Transportation.
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Gaza humanitarian crisis: A convoy of 109 UN aid lorries carrying food was violently looted in Gaza on Saturday, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (Unrwa) says.

In case of war: Millions of Swedes have started receiving copies of a pamphlet advising the population how to cope in the event of war. Other Nordic countries have taken similar action.

In Tbilisi: Police in Georgia's capital have clashed with demonstrators protesting against last month's disputed election which they say was stolen by the government.
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AT THE SCENE

Avignon, France

'There will forever be 51 people who defiled me'

An older woman with a bob haircut is walking outside.

A verdict from a panel of five judges expected on 20 December. Credit: EPA

Gisèle Pelicot, the victim in the mass rape trial that has shocked France and the world, is giving her final statement on Tuesday morning. Her then husband Dominique Pelicot admitted drugging her for almost a decade and recruiting dozens of men online to rape her in their home when she was unconscious. Please note, our coverage contains very distressing accounts of sexual abuse.

Laura Gozzi, BBC News

The courtroom in Avignon is full. Dozens of journalists - both from French and foreign media - are in attendance. To our left is the box where about 15 defendants are sitting. Most stare ahead blankly at the seven presiding judges, although one man is holding his head in his hands. Following one last defendant taking the stand, Gisèle Pelicot starts giving evidence. She begins by saying: "I knew what I was signing up for when I gave up the right to a closed trial … I admit that today I can feel the tiredness." Pelicot adds that for her this is a "trial of cowardliness". Later, she says: "I don't think I'll ever feel at peace until the end of my life. I'll learn to live with it. I'll rebuild myself. But there'll forever be 51 people who have defiled me. And I will have to live with this for the rest of my life."

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BEYOND THE HEADLINES

The Christians who see Trump as their saviour

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Rev Franklin Graham speaks during a rally in North Carolina ahead of the presidential election. Credit: Reuters

One of the most striking themes of Donald Trump's election campaign was that he had been chosen by God - a notion reinforced by a bullet grazing his ear during the failed attempt on his life in July. Our religion editor Aleem Maqbool explores why so many see the president-elect, who isn’t known to have an especially strong faith, as a man sent from God.

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