Apple Daily publisher Jimmy Lai convicted over pro-democracy actions in Hong Kong

Former Apple Daily publisher Jimmy Lai, who ran the independent newspaper in Hong Kong, was convicted in Hong Kong on Monday for sedition and collusion with foreign forces. Lai was arrested in 2020 over alleged violations of Beijing's security law.

He was arrested along with eight pro-democracy activists and the publishing facilities of the Apple Daily were raided. Lai was a leading member of the pro-democracy movement that was quashed by Beijing under the national security law. His alleged crime was to call on the international community to support Hong Kong's pro-democracy efforts against the authoritarian rule of Beijing.

Judges ruled that the evidence against Lai was "indisputable" and that his goal in advocating for the pro-democracy movement in China was to see the Chinese Communist Party crumble. Judge Esther Toh said Lai had a "deep resentment and hatred" of the CCP. In 2022, the CCP introduced new history books in Hong Kong to change the narrative about British colonialism.

Apple Daily and Lai were accused of undermining the Chinese government by calling for international sanctions on Hong Kong over China's crackdown on Hong Kong. A pro-democracy movement in 2019 saw protesters armed with black umbrellas to evade surveillance cameras and facial recognition software.

The judges, who are linked to Beijing, handed down a 855-page verdict. Lai is 78 years old and has been locked up since December 2020, primarily in solitary confinement. Supporters slept outside the West Kowloon Magistrates' Court to await the verdict as armed counterterrorism police patrolled nearby, The Washington Post reports.

Judges stated in their verdict that Lai's intent was to "destabilize the governance" of the CCP and that he was a "mastermind" who was dictating the actions of young protesters in the movement as well as courting favor with foreign actors to fight the CCP.

"My family and I are saddened but not surprised by the guilty verdict in my father’s case," said Lai's son Sebastian. "We have always known that my father was being prosecuted solely for his courageous journalism and unwavering commitment to democracy."