Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai and two pro-democracy activists have pleaded guilty to charges of participating in an illegal march during mass anti-government protests in August, 2019. Earlier, Lai and six more activists were found guilty in a separate court case over unauthorised assembly during protests. <br />''<br />''Lee said, he has pleaded guilty, but he has done no wrong in affirming the rights of people to peaceful procession. Sentences in both cases are to be handed down later. The maximum possible punishment is five years in prison.<br />'' <br />''<span style="color: #222222;">The 2019 pro-democracy protests were held in reaction to Beijing's tightening squeeze on wide-ranging freedoms promised to Hong Kong upon its return to Chinese rule in 1997. These protests plunged the semi-autonomous city into its biggest crisis since the handover.</span><span style="font-weight: bold;"> </span><br />