Dozens of prominent activists were sentenced to up to 10 years in prison on Tuesday in Hong Kong’s biggest national security case under a sweeping law imposed by Beijing that crushed a once-thriving pro-democracy movement.

The defendants were prosecuted in 2021 for their roles in an unofficial primary election under the 2020 national security law. They were accused of attempting to paralyze Hong Kong’s government and force the city’s leader to resign by aiming to win a legislative majority and using it to block government budgets indiscriminately.

The 45 convicted received prison terms ranging from four years and two months to 10 years. Legal scholar Benny Tai was given the longest sentence.

They either pleaded guilty to or were found guilty of conspiracy to commit subversion by three government-approved judges. The judges said in the verdict that the activists’ plans to effect change through the election would have undermined the government’s authority and created a constitutional crisis. Two of the 47 original defendants were acquitted.

Tai, who had written an article outlining "ten steps to mutual destruction" is widely seen as the organizer behind the unofficial primary. In a judgment uploaded online, the judges wrote that Tai essentially “advocated for a revolution” by publishing a series of articles over a period of months that traced his thinking, even though in his mitigation letter Tai said the steps were “never intended to be used as blueprint for any political action.”

Some defendants had claimed that the scheme to secure a majority of seats in the legislature would never have materialized, though the judges rejected this reasoning, stating that “all the participants had put in every endeavor to make it a success."

In the judgment, the judges highlighted that a great deal of time, resources and money had been put into the organization of the primary election, and rejected the idea that the scheme had been “doomed to fail.”

“When the Primary Election took place on the 10 and 11 July, no one had remotely mentioned the fact that Primary Election was no more than an academic exercise and that the Scheme was absolutely unattainable,” the judgment read. “In order to succeed, the organisers and participants might have hurdles to overcome, that however was expected in every subversion case where efforts were made to overthrow or paralyse a government.”

The judges said the sentences had been reduced for defendants who said they were unaware the plan to secure a majority in the legislature and stall governance was unlawful.

However, the penalties were not reduced for Tai and Alvin Yeung, as they are lawyers who were “absolutely adamant in pushing for the implementation of the Scheme.”

Observers said the case illustrated how authorities suppressed dissent following huge anti-government protests in 2019, alongside media crackdowns and reduced public choice in elections. The drastic changes reflect how Beijing’s promise to retain the former British colony’s civil liberties for 50 years when it returned to China in 1997 is increasingly threadbare, they said.

Beijing and Hong Kong governments insist the law is necessary for the city's stability.

The sentencing drew criticism from foreign governments and human rights organizations globally.

The U.S. Consulate in Hong Kong said the U.S. strongly condemned the sentences against the 45 pro-democracy advocates and former lawmakers.

“The defendants were aggressively prosecuted and jailed for peacefully participating in normal political activity protected under Hong Kong’s Basic Law,” the statement said. “We call on (Beijing) and Hong Kong authorities to cease politically motivated prosecutions of Hong Kong citizens and to immediately release all political prisoners and individuals jailed for their peaceful advocacy for rights and freedoms.”

Australia's Foreign Minister Penny Wong said its government “gravely concerned” by the sentences for Australian citizen Gordon Ng and the other activists.

“Australia has expressed our strong objections to the Chinese and Hong Kong authorities on the continuing broad application of national security legislation, including in application to Australian citizens,” Wong said in a statement. “We call for China to cease suppression of freedoms of expression, assembly, media and civil society, consistent with the Human Rights Committee and Special Procedure recommendations, including the repeal of the National Security Law in Hong Kong.”

Human Rights Watch said “running in an election and trying to win it is now a crime that can lead to a decade in prison in Hong Kong.”

“Today’s harsh sentences against dozens of prominent democracy activists reflect just how fast Hong Kong’s civil liberties and judicial independence have nosedived in the past four years since the Chinese government imposed the draconian National Security Law on the city,” Maya Wang, associate China director at the rights group, said in a statement.

The subversion case involves pro-democracy activists across the spectrum. They include Tai, former student leader Joshua Wong and former lawmakers. Most of them have already been detained for more than three and a half years before the sentencing. The separations pained them and their families.

More than 200 people stood in line in moderate rain and winds Tuesday morning for a seat in the court, including one of the acquitted defendants Lee Yue-shun. Lee said he hoped members of the public would show they care about the development of the court case.

“The public's interpretation and understanding has a far-reaching impact on our society's future development,” he said.

A supporter locally known as “Grandpa Wong,” who did not know the English spelling of his name, said he wanted to see the convicted activists again. He is about 100 years old and feared he wouldn't be able to see them when they are released from prison.

Wei Siu-lik, a friend of convicted activist Clarisse Yeung, said she arrived at 4 a.m. even though her leg was injured. “I wanted to let them know there are still many here coming here for them,” she said.

Thirty-one activists entered a guilty plea and have better chances of getting reduced sentences. The law authorizes a range of sentences depending on the seriousness of the offense and the defendant’s role in it, going from under three years for the least serious to 10 years to life for people convicted of “grave” offenses.

The unofficial primary in July 2020, which drew 610,000 voters, was meant to pick pro-democracy candidates who would then run in the official election.

The pro-democracy camp at that time hoped they could secure a legislative majority, which would allow them to press for the 2019 protest demands, including greater police accountability and democratic elections for the city leader.

But the government postponed the legislative election that would have followed the primary, citing public health risks during the COVID-19 pandemic