More than 40 of Hong Kong’s best known pro-democracy figures have been sentenced to prison terms of up to 10 years on subversion charges, in the biggest single blow to the city’s already shrinking political freedoms since Beijing imposed a sweeping national security crackdown four years ago.

Joshua Wong and Benny Tai were convicted for attempting subversion in a controversial national security trial.

The 45 defendants, including Joshua Wong, were at the forefront of the opposition movement crushed by Beijing. Many have already been in jail for years.

The laws have chipped away at Hong Kong’s promised autonomy under the “one country, two systems” formula that was meant to hold for 50 years following its handover from Britain to China in 1997.

The sentencing of former youth activist Joshua Wong, 28, and legal scholar Benny Tai, 60, will start at 10 a.m. today, nearly four years after they were arrested

Prominent Activists Will Be Sentenced in Hong Kong's Biggest National Security Case HONG KONG (AP) — Dozens of prominent activists will be sentenced Tuesday in Hong Kong's biggest national security case,