Hong Kong: Jimmy Lai Has Already Spent a Thousand Days in Prison

Behind bars since December 31, 2020, his much-delayed trial under the national security law is scheduled to begin on December 18. His son Sebastian is worried about his state of health.

Baptized by Cardinal Joseph Zen, Jimmy Lai, now 75 years old, has been in prison continuously since December 31, 2020, exactly 1,000 days ago. Apple Daily, his newspaper, ceased publication in 2021 after 500 police raided its offices and the Hong Kong government froze its bank accounts.

The Committee for Hong Kong Freedom, a group of 67 human rights organizations, published an open letter to the US president. The text recommends measures to obtain the immediate release of Jimmy Lai. It requests that the former British colony's chief executive, John Lee, and other Hong Kong officials not be invited to the APEC summit - the Asia-Pacific Cooperation Forum - which is to be held in San Francisco from November 15 to 17. Additionally, sanctions are being sought against Hong Kong government officials and prosecutors who have abused their powers under the Freedom Act.

“Since Beijing imposed it on June 30, 2020,” the open letter reads, “Hong Kong's national security law has been applied broadly and arbitrarily, with the arrest of 264 people for related offenses to national security, including Jimmy Lai. In prosecutions initiated to date, the government has a 100% conviction rate.”

Sebastian Lai, Jimmy Lai's son, warned about his father's health, expressing fear that he could die in prison. Recalling that his father, like many Hong Kong residents, has a British passport, he sent a letter to the London authorities, denouncing their double standards: on the one hand, they say they support the legal battle in favor of Jimmy Lai, but on the other, they continue to promote business with Hong Kong and China as if nothing has happened.

Meanwhile, in Hong Kong, legal measures continue to fall on supporters of the pro-democracy movement and their relatives.