Jimmy Lai awaits his verdict
The trial of former Hong Kong newspaper and magazine publisher Jimmy Lai, who was active in the territory’s pro-democracy movement, ended without a verdict.
The 156-day trial, longer than the expected 80 days, ended with closing arguments on Aug. 25th. It’s uncertain when the three judges will hand down a verdict but, according to one Hong Kong-based newspaper, the South China Morning Post, it’s expected by the end of the year.
Lai, 77, was charged with violating Hong Kong’s and, sequentially, the People’s Republic of China’s National Security Law because he visited U.S. officials in Washington, including, Vice President Mike Spence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, and national security advisor John Bolton during two visits to the United States in 2019.
His media outlets, including Apple Daily, a newspaper, and Next Magazine, were highly critical of the government in Beijing and Hong Kong, especially as it pushed to arrest pro-democracy protestors in Hong Kong in 2019.
Lai has been jailed since 2020. He holds a British passport.
“This was a sham trial whose 156 days of proceedings have shown that Jimmy Lai is guilty of nothing other than exercising his right to free speech,” said Mark Clifford, president of the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation, in an email to SD Metro. “He used his Apple Daily newspaper and Next magazine to hold the Chinese accountable under the Sino-British Declaration, an international treaty that governed the handover of Hong Kong, and the Basic Law, a mini-constitution.”
“These guarantee that HK should have freedom of speech, press, religion, and all the other freedoms we in open societies take for granted. They also guarantee trial by jury, right to bail and right to your own legal counsel — rights that Jimmy and the 800 political prisoners in Hong Kong today have been denied,” Clifford added.
He was a longtime journalist in Hong Kong and Asia before returning to the United States. The Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation, headquartered in Washington, seeks to liberate the territory from what it describes as the territory’s “authoritarian” government.
Lai’s attorney, Robert Pang, told SD Metro in a statement that “the trial has concluded, and the verdict has been reserved.”
“The court will notify us in due course when the verdict and judgment are ready. Any question of sentencing will depend on whether he is convicted,” Pang said in a statement emailed to SD Metro.
“Hong Kong is a law-based society, where laws must be followed and violations will be held accountable,” said the People’s Republic of China’s U.S. Embassy spokesman Liu Pengyu in a statement emailed to SD Metro. “No one should engage in illegal activities under the pretext of ‘freedom’.
“Jimmy Lai has been a key orchestrator and participant in anti-China, destabilizing activities in Hong Kong, serving as a ‘proxy’ and ‘pawn’ for anti-China forces. His trial has been conducted by Hong Kong’s judicial authorities with full independence, in strict accordance with the law. The process is fair, just, and transparent,” he added.
“The Chinese central government firmly supports the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in safeguarding national security, enforcing the law, and punishing activities that endanger national security,” Liu said.
Jimmy Lai was born in China and immigrated to Hong Kong when was 12. He worked on the floor of a garment factory before starting a successful line of clothes, called Giordano. He eventually entered the media business, starting Nextmagazine and Apple Daily, and was reported to be worth over $1 billion.
