Lai is the most high-profile target of the national security law, which has been used by Hong Kong authorities to arrest hundreds of pro-democracy figures, opposition politicians, journalists and academics, crushing political dissent in the city.
Lai’s arrest and long-running trial have drawn criticism from Western governments, including Australia’s, while human rights campaigners have argued the case symbolises the decline of media freedom and judicial independence in the former British colony, which returned to Chinese rule in 1997.
Lai’s wife Teresa arrives at the court ahead of the verdict.Credit: AP
His verdict is also a test for Beijing’s diplomatic ties. US President Donald Trump said he has raised the case with China, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said his government has made it a priority to secure the release of Lai, who is a British citizen.
“This verdict should surprise absolutely no one,” the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong Foundation’s UK and Europe director, Mark Sabah, said.
“The trial against Jimmy Lai has been a grotesque exercise in legal subversion and chicanery – a show trial masquerading as justice. But what’s actually been on display is the complete and total destruction of Hong Kong’s reputation as a global legal centre.”
During Lai’s 156-day trial, prosecutors accused him of conspiring with senior executives of Apple Daily and others to request foreign forces to impose sanctions or blockades and engage in other hostile activities against Hong Kong or China.
The prosecution also accused Lai of making such requests, highlighting his meetings with former US vice president Mike Pence and former secretary of state Mike Pompeo in July 2019 at the height of the protests.
In addition, it presented 161 publications, including Apple Daily articles, to the court as evidence of conspiracy to publish seditious materials, as well as social media posts and text messages.
With wires
