‘It’s a travesty’: Calls to free frail Hong Kong activist Jimmy Lai from jail before it’s too late
The Chinese government has been called to end the “barbaric” detention of pro-democracy media mogul and British citizen Jimmy Lai, who is preparing to learn his fate, before it is too late.
The frail 78-year-old founder of the now-defunct company Apple Daily newspaper could face life imprisonment if sentenced on national security charges in Hong Kong on Monday in a case that has drawn condemnation from around the world.
Mr. Lai, an outspoken critic of China’s ruling Communist Party, was convicted in December in a trial criticized as a “sham trial” that was seen as an indication of declining press freedom in the former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
The activist was arrested in 2020 under a national security law that Beijing claimed was necessary for the city’s stability following last year’s anti-government protests; It was an act condemned as cruel.
Now, on the eve of his sentencing, his son Sebastien Lai said: Independent: “We are under no illusions: This is not justice, it is political persecution. My father was persecuted by the Hong Kong and Chinese authorities for speaking truth to power.
“In December, he was convicted of crimes that amounted to nothing more than public interest journalism and peaceful pro-democracy campaigning. On Monday he will be sentenced to prison, possibly for the rest of his life.”
The ordeal included more than five years of solitary confinement, which Sebastien Lai described as “brutal conditions that few would survive”, and he claims he was left to sweat in a concrete cell with windows sealed to block out fresh air and sunlight.
He said it had “taken a huge toll on his health”, which saw his diabetic father lose a significant amount of weight, his teeth rotting and his nails falling out.
He added: “I call on the UK prime minister to do whatever it takes to bring my father home and save his life. If Beijing is not willing to do this, how will anyone in the UK ever feel safe?”
British politicians from across the political spectrum also demanded his release.
Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper explained Independent: “The whole world will watch the conviction of British citizen Jimmy Lai on Monday. The politically motivated investigation under Beijing’s national security law undermines the rights and freedoms promised to Hong Kong and its people.”
“Jimmy’s case remains a priority for this government and the prime minister, which is why he raised the issue with President Xi during his recent visit to China. We will continue to call for Mr. Lai’s immediate release and access to all necessary medical treatment.”
Former Conservative leader Iain Duncan Smith said: Independent He was a peaceful advocate of democracy against whom China had filed “trumped-up charges” and warned that his sentence “could lead to him being imprisoned for the rest of his life.”
“This is a tragedy, this is a travesty, and this man needs to have the full support of the free world along with the demand that he be released and be with his family again,” he said.
“It is worth noting that, as a British citizen, he is not allowed to have access to the consulate, which is his international law right, and he is not allowed to see his family. He is suffering. He is a sick man. And I hope and pray that the Chinese government will finally realize that this barbarity must end and he will be released,” he added.
Labour’s Shami Chakrabarti said: “There comes a point when we have exhausted our arguments about rights and freedoms and demand simple mercy instead. Surely the court will find that this 78-year-old poses no danger to anyone and that there is nothing that can prevail like mercy?”
Sir Keir Starmer raised Mr Lai’s case with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his recent visit to China following mounting pressure but failed to secure his release.
Foreign Minister Yvette Cooper said: Independent: “The whole world will watch the conviction of British citizen Jimmy Lai on Monday. The politically motivated investigation under Beijing’s National Security Law undermines the rights and freedoms promised to Hong Kong and its people.”
“Jimmy’s case remains a priority for this government and the prime minister, which is why he raised the issue with President Xi during his recent visit to China. We will continue to call for Mr. Lai’s immediate release and access to all necessary medical treatment.”
Kerry Moscogiuri, interim chief executive of human rights charity Amnesty International UK, called for Mr Lai to be released immediately and unconditionally and for all his criminal convictions to be expunged, adding: “No one should be prosecuted simply for exercising their human rights.”
He said he was imprisoned as a result of “a sham trial and draconian laws that sought to crush freedoms in Hong Kong, transforming Hong Kong from a city of tolerance and open debate into a city of repression and self-censorship.”
He called his case “an attack on freedom of the press and freedom of expression from the very beginning” and said it was “deeply concerning that, given his age and state of health, more time behind bars could mean his life”.
Benedict Rogers, co-founder and president of Hong Kong Watch, warned that due to his deteriorating health, “Unless an urgent intervention is made to ensure his release, he will die in prison as a martyr of freedom. The international community must take immediate action to demand his release.”
Mr. Lai was convicted of conspiring with others to collude with foreign powers and conspiring to publish seditious articles. Accused of conspiring with senior executives Apple Daily and, among others, requesting foreign powers to impose sanctions or blockades or take other hostile actions against China or Hong Kong.
He denied all charges. He was previously convicted of lesser fraud-related charges and is serving a prison sentence of nearly six years.
