People who had waited outside the court since the previous night, along with police, understood the significance of the televised proceedings starting this Monday. Jimmy Lai, the press magnate behind Apple Daily and a vocal critic of the government’s actions, faced life imprisonment on charges of collusion with foreign powers and sedition. Lai was brought to court in a police van from prison, where he had served light sentences in recent years.
These proceedings mark a peak moment in Hong Kong’s ongoing judicial campaign against anti-government activists, following the approval of the National Security Law. Beijing backed the law to clamp down on protests that pushed the former colony toward a breaking point in 2019. Some viewed the move as restoring stability; others saw it as eroding long-standing freedoms by applying the principle of “one country, two systems.” Police warned that any obstruction would be punished, while local media focused on a single, outspoken activist in the area. The movement’s ashes linger only as exile and imprisonment for its leaders.
Seventy-six-year-old Lai did not accept the accusations. “In matters of fundamental rights, protection should be interpreted generously in Lai’s favor,” his lawyers stated at the outset of the hearing. The proceedings are expected to be complex. Judges enforcing the National Security Law are appointed by Hong Kong’s chief executive. That position has a reputation for being firm, and the security minister has already suggested that the trial would illustrate the severity of Lai’s actions, praising past convictions under the National Security Law.
“Provocative” information
Lai and other Apple Daily officials are accused of publishing provocative information and of colluding with foreign powers by urging the international community to sanction the governments of Hong Kong and China, among other actions.
For decades, Lai has been a central figure in Hong Kong’s public life. He is a polarizing character, admired by some and resented by others. He left the mainland as a child during famine, arriving in Hong Kong as a stowaway on a fishing boat. He earned a living through various jobs, built a textile business, and eventually created a media empire. After the suppression of student protests in Tiananmen Square, Lai turned to journalism as a means of challenging Beijing. In 1995, Apple Daily rose as the loudest and most popular newspaper in the former colony, just two years before Hong Kong’s return to Chinese sovereignty.
The publication represented a nontraditional form of journalism: sensational, bold, and at times morally flexible. Its success disrupted the local media landscape and sparked a wave of imitators. It also reflected enduring prejudices against mainland Chinese, a prejudice that some labeled racism or xenophobia when people from the mainland did not share Hong Kong’s political and cultural affinity. The paper was notorious for brash advertising that linked mainland migrants to locust plagues or portrayed their ways as reckless in the face of reform. Lai’s approach drew comparisons to figures often described as provocateurs in media history.
Revolutionary slogans
What is under examination today is not just Lai’s personal morality but his role in supporting mass mobilizations. Throughout the most turbulent months, protesters reportedly shared and removed pages containing revolutionary slogans from the newspaper. Lai’s rallies were noted for attracting international attention, including bands of officials and critics from abroad. At times, American diplomats and influential conservative voices were mentioned in connection with the movement; lawmakers and advisers associated with U.S. policy were cited as examples of foreign interference from Beijing’s perspective. Beijing has long criticized foreign involvement in Hong Kong’s affairs, and with the National Security Law in force, the expectation of prison terms appeared likely. Apple Daily itself faced a cascade of legal challenges, police raids, staff arrests, and asset freezes in 2021, signaling the broader crackdown on press freedom in the city.
The hearing against Lai, who holds a British passport, has drawn international attention. The United Kingdom described the case as highly politicized, emphasizing its political dimensions, while the Chinese embassy condemned what it called blatant interference in Hong Kong’s justice system and reaffirmed the seriousness of the charges.
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