Media mogul Jimmy Lai, an outspoken critic of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), went on trial in Hong Kong on Dec. 18, amid widespread calls for his release.
Mr. Lai, 76, founder of the now-defunct newspaper Apple Daily and a supporter of Hong Kong’s past pro-democracy movements, is accused of “collusion” with foreign forces under a draconian national security law that the CCP imposed on Hong Kong in 2020. He’s also accused of taking part in a conspiracy to publish “seditious” publications under a British colonial-era sedition law.
His trial at the West Kowloon Law Courts building was open to the public on Dec. 18 and is expected to last 80 days. If convicted, he faces a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
Mr. Lai, the most high-profile figure to be charged under the national security law, is one of many Hongkongers who have lost their freedoms in recent years over their roles in the anti-CCP, pro-democracy protest movement of 2019 and 2020. According to Washington-based advocacy group Hong Kong Democracy Council (HKDC), there are currently more than 1,760 political prisoners in the former British colony.
As a result, Mr. Lai had already been in prison for more than 1,000 days before the start of the trial on Dec. 18.
Concerns
Both the U.S. and the UK governments released statements calling for Mr. Lai’s release ahead of the trial.“The United States condemns the prosecution of pro-democracy advocate and media owner Jimmy Lai in Hong Kong under the PRC-imposed National Security Law,” U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement, referring to China’s official name, People’s Republic of China.
“We urge Beijing and Hong Kong authorities to respect press freedom in Hong Kong. We call on Hong Kong authorities to immediately release Jimmy Lai and all others imprisoned for defending their rights.”
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said he was “particularly concerned at the politically motivated prosecution” of Mr. Lai, according to a statement.
“As a prominent and outspoken journalist and publisher, Jimmy Lai has been targeted in a clear attempt to stop the peaceful exercise of his rights to freedom of expression and association,” Mr. Cameron said. “I call on the Hong Kong authorities to end their prosecution and release Jimmy Lai.”
Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J.) and Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), the chair and co-chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China, issued a joint statement on Dec. 17 saying that Mr. Lai’s trial “is a political prosecution plain and simple.”
“Charges against Jimmy Lai should be dropped and he should be released with over 1,000 other political prisoners. Failing these steps, the U.S. should sanction the judges and prosecutors involved in this case and other National Security Law related cases, as we have consistently urged the Biden Administration to do,” the lawmakers wrote.
“We will continue to demand the unconditional release of Jimmy Lai and all of Hong Kong’s political prisoners and seek ways to raise the diplomatic and reputational costs globally for the Hong Kong and PRC government’s rough dismantling of democratic freedom and the rule of law in Hong Kong.”
