Hong Kong, pro-democracy tycoon Jimmy Lai sentenced to 20 years in prison

Hong Kong, Feb. 9 (LaPresse) – Jimmy Lai, former Hong Kong media tycoon, pro-democracy activist and fierce critic of Beijing, has been sentenced to 20 years in prison in one of the most important cases linked to the national security law imposed by China. Lai, 78, was convicted last December of conspiring, together with others, with foreign forces with the aim of endangering national security and of conspiring to publish subversive articles. The maximum penalty for his conviction was life imprisonment. The other defendants, six former employees of his newspaper Apple Daily and two activists, were given prison sentences ranging from 6 years and 3 months to 10 years. Asked whether they would appeal, his lawyer Robert Pang replied “no comment”. The government reiterated that the case has nothing to do with freedom of the press, stating that the defendants used journalism for years as a pretext to commit acts that harmed China and Hong Kong. Lai was one of the first prominent figures to be arrested under the security law in 2020. Within a year, some Apple Daily journalists were also arrested. “We will never stop fighting until he is free”, said Lai’s daughter, Claire.