Hong Kong’s High Court will hand down its judgment in the national security trial of former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying on Monday.
Judges Esther Toh Lye-ping, Susana Maria D’Almada Remedios and Alex Lee Wan-tang will deliver their verdict at 10am in a hearing that is expected to last for about an hour, according to the judiciary’s website, following a marathon trial that concluded in August after more than 1½ years.
Lai, who has been detained since December 2020, has denied two conspiracy counts of collusion with foreign forces and a third of conspiracy to print seditious articles.
He allegedly used his news outlet and social media platforms to trigger international sanctions and incite public disaffection towards authorities between April 2019 and June 2021.
He is also said to have provided financial backing to the “Fight for Freedom, Stand with Hong Kong” lobbying group to instigate hostile actions by the West.
He and the three companies he owned, namely Apple Daily Limited, Apple Daily Printing Limited and AD Internet Limited, were charged under the city’s national security law imposed by Beijing in 2020.
Lai could face life in prison if convicted.
Asked to comment on the coming verdict, Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said that safeguarding national sovereignty, security and development interests was “the principle of ‘one country, two systems’”.
“We firmly support the Hong Kong government in safeguarding national security and punishing crimes that endanger national security,” he said on Friday.
Last week, Hong Kong authorities hit back at what they described as US politicians’ “absurd and fact-twisting” allegations regarding the health of Lai and their calls for his unconditional release from prison.
“This is an obvious attempt to exert pressure on the courts of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, completely disregarding the spirit of the rule of law,” a spokesman for the Hong Kong government said.
The statement was issued in response to a resolution introduced last Thursday by John Moolenaar, chairman of the US House Select Committee on China, and committee member Raja Krishnamoorthi. The resolution condemned Hong Kong authorities for their treatment of Lai and demanded his immediate and unconditional release.
In the resolution, the congressmen alleged that “systemic abuse” in Hong Kong’s prison system had “severely impacted” Lai’s health.
The Hong Kong government reiterated that Lai has been receiving adequate medical care, noting that a senior counsel representing the founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily tabloid newspaper had told the court that correctional services authorities had been arranging daily medical check-ups.
This was one of numerous occasions on which Western politicians have condemned Lai’s prosecution as an attack on press freedom and demanded his release. Beijing and the Hong Kong government have repeatedly dismissed such accusations.
The 78-year-old businessman-turned-opposition activist is the most prominent figure yet to be prosecuted under the Beijing-imposed national security law.
Collusion with foreign forces – one of four offences criminalised under the law – carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
The law sets out a three-tier sentencing regime for the offence, with a minimum jail term of 10 years applying to a “principal offender”.
The Court of Appeal has ruled that the security law’s sentencing regime can also be used to sentence conspiracy offences.
The defence can lodge an appeal within 28 days of sentencing.
The charge of conspiracy to print seditious articles carries a maximum sentence of two years’ imprisonment for a first offence under the now-repealed sections 9 and 10 of the colonial-era Crimes Ordinance.
Even if Lai is acquitted, his immediate release is not guaranteed. The secretary for justice may apply to extend his detention pending a possible appeal, which must be filed within 14 days of the judgment.
The court will decide whether to grant the secretary’s request or grant Lai bail, but it must be satisfied that he will not continue to endanger national security before allowing any temporary release. - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
