Hong Kong’s High Court found tycoon and pro-democracy campaigner Jimmy Lai guilty on Monday of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces in the city’s highest-profile trial under a China-imposed national security law that could see him jailed for life.
The landmark case has drawn international scrutiny of Hong Kong’s judicial independence amid a years-long crackdown on rights and freedoms in the global financial hub after 2019 pro-democracy protests that Beijing saw as a challenge to its rule.
“There is no doubt” that Lai “had harbored his resentment and hatred of” China for many of his adult years, Judge Esther Toh told a packed courtroom as the tycoon, wearing a pale green jumper and a grey jacket, sat with his arms folded.
Lai, the founder of the now shuttered Apple Daily Newspaper and one of the most prominent critics of China’s Communist Party leadership, has already spent five years in jail, facing a slew of litigation under the sweeping security legislation that Beijing enacted in response to the 2019 protests.
A pre-sentencing hearing at which Lai can plead for lenience is scheduled for January 12. His lawyer, Steven Kwan, said Lai would decide whether to appeal after the sentencing.
Hong Kong leader John Lee and national security police chief Steve Li told reporters on Monday they welcomed the verdict.
“The judiciary is confident and unafraid of any intimidation and firmly discharges its responsibility to safeguard national security,” the city’s leader said at the airport before a regular visit to Beijing.
Lai, who suffers from health issues including diabetes and high blood pressure, was found guilty on two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and one of conspiracy to publish seditious material. He had pleaded not guilty on all counts.
The Chinese and Hong Kong governments have said the tycoon’s trial was fair and that the national security law treats all equally. They have said no freedoms are absolute when it comes to safeguarding national security.