Jimmy Lai, Hong Kong pro-democracy figure, sentenced to 20 years in prison for national security offences | Jimmy Lai
Jimmy Lai, the once powerful media mogul and leading pro-democracy activist, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison in Hong Kong for national security crimes.
The sentence is the culmination of a years-long saga that critics say represents Hong Kong’s transformation from a mostly free city to one where dissent is violently suppressed by Chinese Communist Party-controlled authorities.
Lai, 78, was convicted in December on charges of rebellion and collusion with foreign forces. He pleaded not guilty to all the charges. Collusion convictions carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.
Lai’s sentence was immediately condemned by press freedom and human rights groups. In the statement made by Reporters Without Borders, the following statements were made: “Today, the curtain is closing on press freedom in Hong Kong… This court decision underlines the complete collapse of press freedom in Hong Kong and the authorities’ deep disdain for independent journalism.”
Human Rights Watch also issued a statement saying the length of Lai’s prison sentence was “in effect a death sentence.”
“A punishment of this magnitude is both cruel and deeply unjust. Lai’s years of persecution demonstrate the Chinese government’s determination to crush independent journalism and silence anyone who dares to criticize the Communist party,” the statement said.
Amnesty International called the incident “another terrible turning point in Hong Kong’s transformation from a city governed by the rule of law to one governed by fear.”
Lai’s prosecution was stated to be politically motivated by human rights groups and the British government, which called for his release.
On Friday, Chinese state media described Lai, a British national who has been living in Hong Kong since fleeing China as a child refugee, as an “anti-government agitator and traitor.”
Lai is the founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily, a popular Hong Kong newspaper that supported the growing pro-democracy movement in the city in the 2010s.
The movement was suppressed in June 2020 with the imposition of a harsh national security law that criminalizes most forms of dissent. Lai was arrested and charged under this law in August of the same year. Apple Daily was forced to close in 2021.
British prime minister Keir Starmer said he raised Lai’s case when he met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in Beijing in January. However, it is unclear what progress the UK has made in securing Lai’s release. Lai’s son, Sebastien Lai, recently said that the UK government was not doing enough for his father and that “time is running out”.
US President Donald Trump also said he would ensure Lai’s release.
Concerns are growing about Lai’s health and welfare in prison. His family said that he had suffered extreme weight loss and that his teeth were rotten. He has been behind bars since December 2020 and has spent most of that time in solitary confinement. Hong Kong authorities said Lai was receiving necessary medical care and requested to be kept separate from other prisoners.
Lai was convicted in the landmark national security case along with eight other defendants – two activists and six former executives from Lai’s media company – all of whom pleaded guilty.
Lai’s trial was presided over by three judges handpicked by the government to hear national security cases. In their 855-page verdict convicting him, the judges said Lai was “a very savvy businessman” and that it was “unfortunate that his deep resentment and hatred of the Chinese Communist party led him down a thorny path.”
The judges said Lai was someone who was “willing to destroy the CCP.”
Lai was accused of using Apple Daily and his political connections, particularly in the United States, to lobby foreign governments to impose sanctions on China and Hong Kong following the suppression of pro-democracy protests in 2019 and 2020.
Lai said he never called for sanctions after the national security law was enacted because “to do so would amount to suicide.”
