China expressed strong dissatisfaction and firm opposition to what it described as smears and slanders targeting Hong Kong’s judicial system, following international criticism of the guilty verdict handed down to media tycoon and pro-democracy campaigner Jimmy Lai on Monday (15 December).
China’s foreign ministry did not name any countries but urged relevant nations to respect China’s sovereignty and Hong Kong’s legal system.
Spokesperson Guo Jiakun told reporters, “We urge the relevant countries to not make irresponsible remarks on the trial of judicial cases in Hong Kong and not to interfere in Hong Kong’s judiciary or China’s internal affairs in any form.”
Hong Kong’s High Court on Monday found Lai guilty of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and conspiracy to publish seditious material in the city’s highest-profile trial under a China-imposed national security law, a ruling that could see the 78-year-old jailed for life.
“There is no doubt that Lai had harboured his resentment and hatred of China for many of his adult years,” Judge Esther Toh told a packed courtroom.
Judges Alex Lee and Susana D’Almada Remedios also sat on the panel. Lai, founder of the now-shuttered Apple Daily, wore a pale green jumper and grey jacket, sitting with his arms folded.
The landmark case has intensified scrutiny over Hong Kong’s judicial independence amid a years-long crackdown on political dissent following the 2019 pro-democracy protests. Supporters view Lai as a champion of press freedom, while Beijing regards him as a key figure behind the protests and a conspirator advocating for U.S. sanctions against Hong Kong and the mainland.
He's already spent nearly five years in detention facing multiple legal proceedings under the sweeping national security law. A pre-sentencing hearing is scheduled for 12 January, where Lai may request leniency. His lawyer, Steven Kwan, said the decision to appeal would follow the sentencing.
Hong Kong leader John Lee and national security police chief Steve Li expressed support for the verdict.
“The Judiciary is confident and unafraid of any intimidation and firmly discharges its responsibility to safeguard national security,” Lee said.
International criticism
Rights groups and foreign governments have criticised the verdict. The UK called Lai’s prosecution politically motivated and demanded his immediate release. The U.S. has repeatedly raised his case with Chinese authorities, including President Donald Trump’s discussion with his counterpart Xi Jinping in October.
Beh Lih Yi, Asia-Pacific director of the Committee to Protect Journalists, described the verdict as a “sham conviction” and “a disgraceful act of persecution,” saying Lai’s only crime was defending democracy through journalism.
Amnesty International and other pro-democracy activists also condemned the outcome.
China defends verdict
Chinese and Hong Kong officials have maintained that Lai received a fair trial, arguing that the national security law applies equally to all and that freedoms are not absolute when national security is at stake.
China’s national security office in Hong Kong described Lai as a “pawn of external anti-China forces” seeking to instigate a “colour revolution” in the city.
Lai’s family say his health has deteriorated after more than 1,800 days in solitary confinement, suffering from diabetes, high blood pressure, and heart palpitations.
The case marks a pivotal moment in Hong Kong’s post-protest era, with the city’s largest opposition party, the Democratic Party, disbanding under pressure from Beijing, signalling the near disappearance of organised democratic opposition.
The verdict comes amid heightened sensitivity in Hong Kong, still reeling from a deadly fire last month that claimed at least 160 lives. Authorities have warned against any attempts to use the tragedy to incite unrest or revive pro-democracy protests.
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Global oil prices continue to rise, currently surpassing $119 a barrel this Monday, an almost four year high following fresh U.S.-Israeli strikes targeting oil depots. Stock markets shares slumped on fears the conflict with Iran could disrupt shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.
China has urged Afghanistan and Pakistan to resolve their dispute through dialogue after Chinese envoy Yue Xiaoyong met Afghan Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi, as fighting between the two neighbours entered its eleventh day.
Iranian civilian and military officials have pledged their obedience to the new leader, Ayatollah Seyed Mojtaba Khamenei, with President Masoud Pezeshkian saying his leadership “will herald a new era of dignity and authority for the Iranian nation.”.
Almost 2,000 people have been evacuated from Iran via Azerbaijan since conflict erupted in the Middle East.
Trump says the United States "don’t need people that join wars after we’ve already won," targeting his criticism at UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Israel continues to fire missles at strategic sites in Iran and Gulf regions report more strikes from Iran.
Global oil prices continue to rise, currently surpassing $119 a barrel this Monday, an almost four year high following fresh U.S.-Israeli strikes targeting oil depots. Stock markets shares slumped on fears the conflict with Iran could disrupt shipments through the Strait of Hormuz.
Mojtaba Khamenei, son of the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, is a hardline cleric with strong backing from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. His rise signals continuity in Tehran's anti-Western policies.
Iran named Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father Ali Khamenei as supreme leader on Monday (9 March), signaling that hardliners remain firmly in charge, as the week-old U.S.-Israeli war with Iran pushed oil above $100 a barrel.
Entry and exit across the state border between Azerbaijan and Iran for all types of cargo vehicles, including those in transit, will resume on 9 March, according to a statement by the Cabinet of Ministers of Azerbaijan.
U.S. President Donald Trump and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer spoke by phone on Sunday as tensions between Washington and Westminster deepened over the conflict involving Iran. The call came less than a day after Trump criticised Britain’s response to U.S. strikes on Iranian targets.
Norwegian police are searching for a suspect after an explosion at the U.S. embassy in Oslo on 8 March caused minor damage but no injuries, in what authorities say may have been a deliberate attack linked to the Middle East crisis.
An explosion damaged a synagogue in the Belgian city of Liège early on Monday (9 March) in what authorities said was an antisemitic attack that caused damage but no injuries.
The Group of Seven (G7) finance ministers will meet on Monday to discuss a global rise in oil prices and a joint release of oil from emergency reserves coordinated by the International Energy Agency, the Financial Times reports.
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