Hong Kong speech therapists convicted of sedition over books

By KARMEN LI and ZEN SOO
Associated Press

HONG KONG (AP) — Five Hong Kong speech therapists have been convicted of sedition law after they printed a series of children’s books about sheep and wolves that a court said was aimed at inciting hatred against authorities. The five could face up to two years imprisonment. They had pleaded not guilty. They were arrested in July 2021, after publishing books with stories that revolved around a village of sheep that has to deal with wolves from a different village. The sheep take action like going on strike or escaping by boat, and police said that the stories paralleled the incidents linked to political unrest in Hong Kong. Authorities have cracked down on dissent since pro-democracy protests in 2019, arresting dozens of activists while others have fled abroad.