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| 2 Who Attacked Hong Kong Journalist Are Sentenced to 19 Years | |
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| HONG KONG — Two men who attacked a Hong Kong journalist with a cleaver last year were sentenced to 19 years in prison on Friday, the public broadcaster RTHK reported. | HONG KONG — Two men who attacked a Hong Kong journalist with a cleaver last year were sentenced to 19 years in prison on Friday, the public broadcaster RTHK reported. |
| The victim, Kevin Lau Chun-to, who had recently been removed as chief editor of the Ming Pao newspaper, suffered severe cuts on his back and legs when he was attacked by the pair after getting out of his car to visit a cafe in February 2014. | The victim, Kevin Lau Chun-to, who had recently been removed as chief editor of the Ming Pao newspaper, suffered severe cuts on his back and legs when he was attacked by the pair after getting out of his car to visit a cafe in February 2014. |
| Mr. Lau’s dismissal from his post at the newspaper, a prestigious Chinese-language daily, had prompted protests, and the brutal assault on him heightened fears about efforts to intimidate news outlets in Hong Kong. The police say they could not pinpoint a motive for the attack, but Mr. Lau said he could think of no reason he should be singled out apart from his work. | Mr. Lau’s dismissal from his post at the newspaper, a prestigious Chinese-language daily, had prompted protests, and the brutal assault on him heightened fears about efforts to intimidate news outlets in Hong Kong. The police say they could not pinpoint a motive for the attack, but Mr. Lau said he could think of no reason he should be singled out apart from his work. |
| The judge in the case, Esther Toh, said on Friday that a lengthy sentence was necessary because of the severity of the violence against Mr. Lau. | The judge in the case, Esther Toh, said on Friday that a lengthy sentence was necessary because of the severity of the violence against Mr. Lau. |
| “It was a totally senseless and brutal attack,” she said, according to the South China Morning Post. “Members of the press, like everyone else, should be protected by the law without fear in their daily business.” | “It was a totally senseless and brutal attack,” she said, according to the South China Morning Post. “Members of the press, like everyone else, should be protected by the law without fear in their daily business.” |
| The attackers, Yip Kim-wah and Wong Chi-wah, were found guilty last week of causing grievous bodily harm with intent in the assault on Mr. Lau. The men said they had been offered 100,000 Hong Kong dollars, or about $12,900, to carry out the attack, but who ordered the attack, or why, was never disclosed. | The attackers, Yip Kim-wah and Wong Chi-wah, were found guilty last week of causing grievous bodily harm with intent in the assault on Mr. Lau. The men said they had been offered 100,000 Hong Kong dollars, or about $12,900, to carry out the attack, but who ordered the attack, or why, was never disclosed. |
| The two men, both 39, were arrested in Guangdong Province in China and said the police there had beaten them to force them to confess. | The two men, both 39, were arrested in Guangdong Province in China and said the police there had beaten them to force them to confess. |
| Mr. Lau, 50, survived the attack but was hospitalized for months and is still undergoing rehabilitation. | Mr. Lau, 50, survived the attack but was hospitalized for months and is still undergoing rehabilitation. |