HONG KONG — Final arguments concluded Thursday in the landmark national security trial of Hong Kong pro-democracy newspaper founder Jimmy Lai, who could face up to a life sentence if convicted.
Lai founded the now-defunct Apple Daily, which had been one of the local news outlets most critical of the government. He was arrested in 2020 under a national security law imposed by Beijing following widespread anti-government protests in the territory in 2019.
Lai is charged with colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security and conspiring with others to issue seditious publications. His trial has stretched nearly 160 days, almost double the original estimate. The verdict date is unclear but is expected to be delivered in weeks or months. He could face a sentence ranging from three years in prison to a life term if he is convicted.
His case has drawn international attention as a test of press freedom and judicial independence in the Asian financial hub.
Heated discussion between judges and the defense
Over the past week, defense lawyer Robert Pang repeatedly butted heads with judges when he tried to argue that his client’s comments made online were just armchair punditry, pushing back against the prosecution’s notion that he was requesting sanctions, blockages or hostile activities against China or Hong Kong.
Last Friday, Esther Toh, one of the judges approved by the government to handle the case, challenged Pang’s arguments about freedom of expression. She said that right has its limits, and pointed to the arrests of people who expressed views about Palestinian issues in the U.S. and Britain.
On Wednesday, lawyer Marc Corlett, who was also representing Lai, disputed the allegation that his client was conspiring with others, including those linked with an advocacy group called “Stand with Hong Kong Fight for Freedom,” to call for foreign actions.
Corlett described one of the prosecution witnesses involved in the alleged conspiracy as “a serial liar.” Even if the court took his evidence seriously, it doesn’t mean that Lai had entered into an ongoing agreement with others to work toward the alleged goal, he said.
The prosecution accused Lai of asking foreign countries, especially the United States, to take actions against Beijing “under the guise of fighting for freedom and democracy.”
It said Lai continued to request foreign actions even after his arrest in August 2020, citing Lai’s “persistent” foreign collaborations as his “unwavering intent” to solicit foreign actions. It argued Lai’s testimony was not credible and that he had used the Apple Daily to seek foreign sanctions, describing the acts as a betrayal of national interest and security.
Lai’s yearslong detention raises concerns
Lai, who is 77, has been in jail for about four years and eight months and has reported experiencing heart palpitations. Concerns over his health delayed the start of the final arguments this month. The government said a medical examination of Lai found no abnormalities and that the medical care he received in custody was adequate.
When Lai entered the courtroom, he smiled and waved at people sitting in the public gallery. He also pressed his palms together in an apparent expression of gratitude.
After Toh said the judges would inform the parties in “good time” about when the verdict may come and left the courtroom, Lai spoke with his lawyers briefly and waved at the public gallery before departing.
Hours ahead of the hearing, dozens of people were in line outside the court building for a seat in the main courtroom. Resident Chan Chung-yee said he worried about Lai’s health, likening Lai to a flag representing freedom and democracy.
“Jimmy Lai did a lot of good deeds for us Hong Kongers,” he said.
Foreign governments and rights groups have raised concerns about Lai’s case. U.S. President Donald Trump said in a Fox News radio interview released Aug. 14 that he had already brought up the issue with China. “I’m going to do everything I can to save him,” he said.
Reporters Without Borders, alongside a coalition of 72 human rights and press freedom organizations, last week sent a letter to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to urge him to demand Lai’s “urgent humanitarian release.”
China has accused Lai of stirring up a rise in anti-China sentiments in Hong Kong, saying it firmly opposes the interference of other countries in its internal affairs.
When Britain handed back Hong Kong to China in 1997, Beijing promised to retain the former colony’s civil liberties for at least 50 years. But critics say the freedoms promised were being curtailed after the introduction of the security law.
Chinese and Hong Kong authorities insist the law was necessary for the city’s stability.
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