Hong Kong’s most prominent media tycoon Jimmy Lai was sentenced on Monday (9 February) to a total of 20 years in prison on national security charges. The verdict covers two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and one count related to publishing seditious materials.
The sentence ends a legal saga spanning almost five years, and Hong Kong's most high-profile national security hearing.
Lai, founder of the now-shuttered Apple Daily newspaper, was first arrested in August 2020 and convicted last year. His sentence of 20 years was within the most severe penalty "band" of 10 years to life imprisonment for offences of a "grave nature".
The Hong Kong court said Lai's sentence was enhanced by the fact that he was "mastermind" and driving force behind foreign collusion conspiracies.
The 78-year-old, a British citizen, has denied all the charges against him, saying in court he is a "political prisoner" facing persecution from Beijing.
Lai’s case has drawn criticism from global leaders, including U.S. President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.
"I raised the case of Jimmy Lai and called for his release," Starmer told the UK parliament after his trip.
The reaction has renewed focus on Hong Kong’s years-long national security crackdown following the mass pro-democracy protests of 2019.
The case has drawn calls for the long-standing critic of the Chinese Communist Party, who friends and supporters say is in frail health, to be freed.
"The harsh 20-year sentence against 78-year-old Jimmy Lai is effectively a death sentence," said Elaine Pearson, Asia Director of Human Rghts Watch. "A sentence of this magnitude is both cruel and profoundly unjust."
Dozens of Lai's supporters queued for several days to secure a spot in the courtroom, with scores of police officers, sniffer dogs and police vehicles including an armoured truck and a bomb disposal van deployed around the area.
In a commentary, China’s state-run Xinhua news agency described the verdict as a “stern warning,” saying anyone who endangers Hong Kong’s stability would face “severe punishment by law,” and defended the ruling as necessary to uphold national security and the rule of law in the city.
Lai's family, lawyer, supporters and former colleagues have warned that he could die in prison as he suffers from health conditions including heart palpitations and high blood pressure.
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