Hong Kong political activists go on trial on subversion charges

Members of the League of Social Democrats scuffle with police outside the West Kowloon Magistrates’ Courts (AP)

Some of Hong Kong’s best-known pro-democracy activists have gone on trial in the biggest prosecution yet under a law imposed by China’s ruling Communist Party to crush dissent.

The 18 defendants could face life in prison if convicted under the national security law critics say is eroding the autonomy promised when Hong Kong returned to China in 1997, and its status as a global business centre.