A Macau court said Thursday it had ended a preliminary hearing in the city’s first national security case and determined a former pro-democracy lawmaker was a “principal offender” of subversion and other crimes and would proceed to trial.
In July 2025, former lawmaker Au Kam San became the first person to be arrested under Macau’s national security lawwith authorities alleging he had ties to foreign groups that threatened China.
Since then there has been a lack of public information about the case.
On Thursday, a Macau court said in a statement that a judge determined on July 2 that Au was the “principal offender” and had committed crimes of “subversion of state power.”
Au was also suspected of “establishing links with organizations, groups or individuals outside Macau… to commit acts endangering national security” and “violation of confidentiality”, the court said.
He added that a national security committee had approved allowing “the court-appointed lawyer, previously accepted by the suspect, to continue to represent him.”
“The suspect’s due process rights are also guaranteed in accordance with the law,” the statement said, adding that the criminal court will schedule hearings for the case.
Au is a primary school teacher who became one of Macau’s longest-serving pro-democracy lawmakers before deciding not to seek re-election in 2021.
The European Union last year condemned his arrest from the Chinese city, saying it only heightened concerns about the “erosion of political pluralism” in the former Portuguese-ruled territory.
In Macau, if a judge decides that there is enough evidence to impose a criminal sentence on a defendant, the judge will issue a warrant for prosecution.
China’s casino hub expanded the scope of national security laws in May 2023, which officials said were intended to increase deterrence of foreign interference.
A new bill was passed in March to allow Macau judges to decide whether national security cases should be heard behind closed doors and require defense lawyers to obtain permission before appearing in such cases.
Lawyers and rights groups have warned that the regulation could harm the functioning of government departments and apply to “any court case”, including Au’s.
