HONG KONG – After more than three years in prison, the long-awaited and delayed national security trial of pro-democracy activist and media mogul Jimmy Lai opened Monday morning under tight security in Hong Kong.
In the most high-profile case since Beijing introduced its controversial national security law in 2020, Hong Kong authorities have accused Lai of “colluding with foreign forces” to sanction, block or engage in other hostile activities, as well as conspiring to publish seditious material under an existing British colonial-era law.
If convicted, the 76-year-old Lai could spend the rest of his life in prison. However, the odds are against him. Earlier this year, Hong Kong security chief Chris Tang boasted of a 100 percent conviction rate under the national security law.
Police officers stand guard outside the West Kowloon Magistrate's Court, where the trial of activist publisher Jimmy Lai is set to open, on Monday, Dec. 18, 2023, in Hong Kong.Vernon Yuen/AP
On the first day of what is expected to be a marathon 80-day trial, Lai sat quietly in the glass-enclosed dock at the back of the courtroom, leaning back in his seat with his arms folded and listening to his defense team argue against his sedition charge. He was wearing a blue shirt and a gray-beige blazer and was flanked by at least three uniformed police officers sitting next to and in front of him. As he entered the courtroom early that morning, he waved to his supporters in the public gallery, which included his wife, daughter and youngest son.
At the bench were three hand-picked judges from the Supreme Court of National Security who will preside over the entire trial, which will be heard without a jury.
The trial was originally scheduled to begin last December but was delayed several times to allow Beijing to reinterpret national security law to allow Hong Kong authorities to bar Lai's chosen British lawyer from representing him abroad and allow prosecutors to prepare the translation enable almost 5,000 pages of documents to be translated into English.
The proceedings are open to the media and public, with the judiciary even moving the proceedings from Hong Kong's Supreme Court to a more spacious venue across the harbor that can accommodate potential observers. While dozens of supporters lined up overnight to secure a spot in the actual courtroom, the police presence outside Hong Kong's West Kowloon Law Courts vastly outnumbered them and gathered the media. The streets surrounding the courthouse were lined with police cars and at least one armored vehicle.
In this file photo, Jimmy Lai walks through Stanley Prison in Hong Kong on July 28, 2023. Louise Delmotte/AP
Authorities in Beijing and Hong Kong have long described Lai and his now-defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, which was forced to close in June 2021, as key instigators of the anti-government protests that rocked Hong Kong in 2019.
Just last week, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning called Lai “one of the most notorious anti-China elements seeking to destabilize Hong Kong and a mastermind of the unrest that took place in Hong Kong.”
“He has clearly collaborated with external forces to undermine China's national security and is responsible for numerous egregious acts,” Mao continued. “That is beyond any doubt.”
Authorities have not yet disclosed what evidence they have on Lai, other than that the businessman used his then Twitter account and Apple Daily to call for sanctions against Chinese and Hong Kong officials.
A security guard stops a supporter waving the Union Jack flag outside the West Kowloon Magistrate's Court during the national security trial of media mogul Jimmy Lai, founder of Apple Daily, in Hong Kong, China, December 18, 2023.Lam Yik / Portal
In an interview with the South China Morning Post last month, Hong Kong Security Minister Chris Tang teased: “If you look at all the details disclosed, you will see how bad they are.”
Since Beijing imposed the national security law on the former British colony in the summer of 2020, Hong Kong authorities have arrested or forced into exile almost the entire pro-democracy camp. Lai was arrested just over a month after the law was introduced.
In an interview with ABC News when he was released on bail later that summer, Lai reflected: “I knew it was coming, I didn't know it was going to happen so quickly. But that's okay and I'm fine, I accept it.” . At this time in my life it is a time of payback, whatever happens, it is a redemption.”
“I came here with a dollar. I fled China when I was twelve.” [Hong Kong] gave me everything. My reward is repayment. It is my salvation.
In this file photo, pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai is escorted into a correctional van outside the Court of Appeal in Hong Kong on February 1, 2021. AFP via Getty Images
Lai's trial is being closely watched by the West, which has condemned Beijing's crackdown on Hong Kong. A conviction would further aggravate relations between Western capitals and Beijing.
On the eve of Monday's trial, US State Department spokesman Matthew Miller released a statement saying: “The United States condemns the prosecution in Hong Kong of pro-democracy advocate and media owner Jimmy Lai under the National Convention imposed by the People's Republic of China Security law. Lai was sentenced to “detention for more than 1,000 days, and authorities in Hong Kong and Beijing have denied him choice of legal representation.”
“We call on the Hong Kong authorities to immediately release Jimmy Lai and all others detained for defending their rights.”
Representatives from at least 10 Western consulates, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, were present Monday morning and watched the trial begin.