British media tycoon and pro-democracy campaigner Jimmy Lai has been sentenced to 20 years in prison by a Hong Kong court, in what his lawyers
and international rights groups have condemned as a politically motivated “sham trial”.
Mr Lai, 78, a British passport holder and the founder of the now-defunct pro-democracy newspaper ‘Apple Daily’, was convicted of foreign collusion and sedition under Hong Kong’s sweeping national security law imposed by Beijing. The punishment is the harshest yet handed down under the legislation.
Supporters say the sentence amounts to “effectively a death sentence” for the elderly media entrepreneur, who has been held in custody for years while facing multiple prosecutions.
Six former executives of ‘Apple Daily’ were also sentenced on the same day, receiving prison terms ranging from six years and nine months to 10 years.
Throughout the proceedings, Mr Lai denied all charges, insisting that his newspaper’s reporting and advocacy fell squarely within the bounds of press freedom. His lawyers argued that the case was designed to silence dissent and intimidate independent media in the city.
Lai’s barrister told the court that his client suffers from hypertension, diabetes and other chronic health conditions, urging leniency. Judges, however, said they were “not inclined” to reduce the sentence on medical grounds.
Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC, who leads Mr Lai’s international legal team but was barred from representing him in court, described the case as predetermined from the outset.
“This has been a show trial from the start — the script was already written,” she told the BBC. “Sentencing Jimmy Lai, already aged 78, to two decades behind bars is an affront to justice and the culmination of more than five years of malicious lawfare against a courageous, elderly British citizen and prisoner of conscience.”
She added that the conclusion of the trial should prompt global leaders to act. “We now call on governments around the world to speak with one voice in demanding that China free Jimmy Lai so he can return to his family in London.”
Hong Kong’s chief executive, John Lee Ka-chiu, welcomed the ruling, calling it “deeply gratifying”. In a Facebook post, he described Mr Lai’s actions as “heinous” and “utterly despicable”, accusing him of using ‘Apple Daily’ to “poison the minds of citizens”, sow division and call for foreign sanctions against China and Hong Kong.
The head of Hong Kong police’s National Security Department also defended the sentence, saying the 20-year term was “appropriate”.
The case has intensified international concern over the erosion of press freedom and judicial independence in Hong Kong, once regarded as one of Asia’s most open media environments. Photo by Office of U.S. Vice President, Wikimedia commons.