Hong Kong to hear from jailed media tycoon Jimmy Lai for the first time in four years at his trial

By Kathleen Magramo, Chris Lau and Nectar Gan, CNN

Hong Kong (CNN) — Jimmy Lai, the pugnacious Hong Kong media tycoon whose now shuttered tabloid Apple Daily was a regular thorn in Beijing’s side, appeared in court on Wednesday at his own national security trial in a high stakes legal battle that could see him spend the rest of his life behind bars.

The 77-year-old, known for his decades-long support of the city’s pro-democracy movement and outspoken criticism of China’s leaders, hasn’t been heard from since he was arrested nearly four years ago amid a deepening crackdown on dissent.

Dressed in a green cardigan and a brown blazer, a visibly thinner Lai smiled and waved at his family seated in the gallery, as he entered the courtroom flanked by officers. His wife and daughter were seated next to Cardinal Joseph Zen, an outspoken former bishop of Hong Kong and a friend of Lai’s.

The businessman is expected to take the stand to defend himself for the first time.

In US court rooms, defense lawyers often advise their clients against testifying in court. But in Hong Kong, court testimony offers a rare chance for detained democracy figures to have their voices heard in a system where national security charges have resulted in months and years of pre-trial detention as well as restrictions on speaking out.

On Tuesday, more than 40 of Hong Kong’s best known pro-democracy figures were sentenced to prison terms of up to 10 years on subversion charges at a separate national security trial. Among them was Joshua Wong, a former student leader and poster child of the city’s once thriving pro-democracy movement, who shouted “I love Hong Kong” before he left the dock.

Lai’s testimony comes just weeks after Donald Trump, who has previously vowed to free the media tycoon, won the White House and has announced a proposed cabinet stacked with multiple China hawks.

Britain has also called for the release of Lai, who has a British passport. On Monday, UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer raised the issue with Chinese leader Xi Jinping on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Brazil. “We’re concerned by reports of Jimmy Lai’s deterioration,” Starmer told Xi in their first meeting.

Lai has been in jail since December 2020 awaiting trial on multiple charges linked to his support for Hong Kong’s democracy protest movement through his media business. He was the founder of Apple Daily, a pro-democracy, anti-Beijing newspaper that was forced to shut down in 2021.

Lai faces two counts of colluding with foreign forces, a crime under a sweeping national security law introduced in 2020 that has transformed Hong Kong, as well as a separate sedition charge. He has pleaded not guilty to all charges and faces a maximum sentence of life in prison if convicted.

The trial, which began in December 2023, is the most high-profile prosecution of a Hong Kong media figure since the city was handed over from British to Chinese control in 1997. It is resuming following a lengthy pause after Lai’s attorneys’ unsuccessful attempt to have the charges dismissed.

Around 100 people waited in line under cold rain on Wednesday morning ahead of the trial testimony, with some expressing support for the media tycoon.

Chiu Mei-ying, a woman in her 70s, said she got to court at 4am this morning. “Lai represents the spirit of Hong Kong,” she told CNN. “After the closure of Apple Daily, there is no real news (to read).”

Prosecutors allege that articles published by Apple Daily violated Hong Kong’s national security law by calling for overseas sanctions against the city’s leaders following the imposition of a landmark national security law in 2020.

Chinese and Hong Kong officials say the law, enacted in the wake of anti-government protests in 2019, has “restored stability” and closed loopholes that allowed “foreign forces” to undermine China.

But critics say it has decimated Hong Kong’s freedoms and altered the city’s legal landscape.

Like all national security trials in Hong Kong, Lai’s trial does not have a jury and is presided over by three judges picked from a national security committee that is approved by Hong Kong’s leader.

Lai reached out to Trump

Lai, a businessman who made a fortune selling clothing before becoming a publisher, has long been an unapologetic thorn in Beijing’s side, openly using Apple Daily as a vehicle to criticize Chinese leaders since its founding in 1995.

A devout Catholic and a known vocal supporter of Trump, Lai had lobbied extensively overseas for foreign governments to apply pressure on China over Hong Kong, something that infuriated leaders in Beijing. At the height of the protests in 2019, Lai traveled to Washington, where he met with then Vice President Mike Pence and other US politicians to discuss the political situation in Hong Kong.

Lai had long held a conviction that Trump and the US government should not shy away from supporting Hong Kong’s civil liberties, which are key for the city’s status as a conduit between China and international markets.

“Mr President, you’re the only one who can save us,” Lai said in an interview with CNN in 2020 weeks before he was arrested. “If you save us, you can stop China’s aggressions. You can also save the world.”

Prosecutors have argued that Lai’s actions and his newspaper’s publishing amounted to lobbying for sanctions against Beijing and Hong Kong, something that is prohibited by the national security law. His lawyers have countered that Lai stopped doing so after the national security law came into effect on June 30, 2020.

During Trump’s first term as president, the US government ended Hong Kong’s special trade status and signed into law an act that authorized sanctions on the city’s officials over China’s crackdown in Hong Kong.

Hong Kong’s current leader, John Lee, the city’s security chief during the landmark 2019 protests, is among those on the US sanctions list, which also includes the city’s former leader and current chief justice.

At a news conference earlier this month, Lee did not directly answer questions about how he would deal with Trump’s return to the presidency.

Lee said there should be “respect for the non-interference with local affairs, internal affairs” of the city, and said Hong Kong values the rule of law.

“We desire mutual respect with all countries, including the US, because trade is beneficial for both sides,” he said.

Last month, conservative podcast host Hugh Hewitt asked Trump whether he can speak with Xi and free Lai, if he is re-elected.

Trump replied “100%, I’ll get him out” and said that it would be “so easy” to free the detained media tycoon, without providing further details.

But Chinese and Hong Kong leaders have long bristled at any criticism leveled by Western governments at the national security crackdown in Hong Kong and have repeatedly condemned Lai in statements issued both before and throughout his trial.

“Jimmy Lai is a key instigator of anti-China activities, and his collusion with external forces to disrupt Hong Kong and incite division is well-known,” China’s foreign ministry office in Hong Kong said in a statement last week. “Hong Kong courts are conducting fair trials on actions that threaten national security, which is a necessary step to uphold both national security and the rule of law.”

How Hong Kong has changed

After the national security law was imposed, many opposition and pro-democracy figures responsible for organizing the protests were arrested without bail, and many civil organizations have since shut down.

The formerly outspoken city of 7.5 million, where protests were once common, has turned into something resembling a mirror of the authoritarian Chinese mainland with a who’s who of opposition figures behind bars and other critical voices silenced or fled overseas.

In March, Hong Kong lawmakers unanimously passed a second national security law, known as Article 23, expanding powers to cover acts of treason, espionage, external interference and unlawful handling of state secrets, following an unusually hasty debate that lasted just 11 days.

Dozens of pro-democracy leaders have been sentenced to lengthy jail terms in recent years, while Hong Kong police have issued HK$1 million ($128,000) bounties for self-exiled activists.

The day before Lai began his testimony, more than 40 of Hong Kong’s best known pro-democracy figures were sentenced to jail terms of up to 10 years on subversion charges at the largest national security trial to date.

Once a bastion of press freedom in China, Hong Kong has seen its once vibrant local media landscape wither since Beijing imposed the national security law on the city, with Chinese-language media hit particularly hard.

Outspoken local news outlets, including Apple Daily and Stand News, were forced to shut down in recent years.

Several foreign media and non-governmental organizations have also since chosen to relocate their headquarters elsewhere, citing the changing political landscape. However, many international media outlets still operate in the city – and it remains home to many foreign journalists.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) ranked Hong Kong at 135 out of 180 places in its annual press freedom ranking. Its 2023 ranking was a big drop from 73rd in 2019 and 18th in 2002. China ranked 179, according to the press rights organization.

Lee, has repeatedly denied media freedoms have faded, and urged both local and foreign press to “tell good stories” about the city.

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