As Hong Kong’s Jimmy Lai sentenced to 20 years in prison, family warns he will “die a martyr”

Hong Kong – Jimmy Lai, a former Hong Kong media expert who was highly critical of Beijing, Jimmy Lai, was sentenced to 20 years in prison on Monday. National security law imposed by China that has almost silence the denial of the village.

Lai, 78, was there He was convicted in December of conspiring with others to cooperate with foreign forces to endanger the security of the country, and of conspiracy to publish seditious documents. The maximum penalty for his conviction was life in prison.

His co-defendants, six former employees of his newspaper Apple Daily and two activists, received sentences of between 6 years and 3 months, and 10 years for conspiracy-related charges.

Lai smiled and waved to his fans as he arrived for the sentencing. But before he left the courtroom, he looked determined, as some people in the public gallery wept. When asked if they will appeal the case, his lawyer Robert Pang said he has nothing to say.

The arrest and trial of a democracy advocate raised concerns in this regard the decline of press freedom in what was once Asia’s center for media independence. The government insists that the case has nothing to do with free media, saying that the defendants used news reporting as an excuse for years to commit harmful acts. China and Hong Kong.

Lai was there one of the first prominent people to be arrested under the securities law in 2020. Within a year, some of Apple Daily’s top reporters were also arrested along with the newspaper. closed in June 2021.

Family warns Lai “will die a martyr in prison”

In a statement, Lai’s son, Sebastien, said the “heavy” sentence was very painful for his family and put his father’s life at risk. “It means the complete destruction of Hong Kong’s legal system and the end of justice,” he said.

His sister Claire called the sentence “sadly cruel” in the same statement. “If this sentence is received, he will die a martyr’s death in prison,” he said.

Lai has been in custody for more than five years.

In January, his lawyer Pang said Lai had health problems including heart palpitations, high blood pressure and diabetes.

The prosecutor said the medical report showed that Lai’s health condition remains stable. The government said Lai asked to be kept in solitary confinement.

Lai’s sentence was condemned worldwide

Lai’s conviction could increase tensions between Beijing and foreign governments, which have criticized Lai’s conviction and sentence.

President Trump, who is expected to visit China in April, said in December that he felt “very bad” after the verdict, and noted that he had spoken to Chinese leader Xi Jinping about Lai and asked him to “consider his release.”

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government has also called for the release of Lai, who is a British citizen. UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper called prosecutors “politically motivated,” and said a prison sentence was tantamount to a life sentence.

Human Rights Watch Asia director Elaine Pearson said the 20-year sentence is a death sentence, calling it cruel and unjust.

China’s leaders say Lai’s sentence is “very gratifying”

Hong Kong leader John Lee said Lai’s sentence reflects the rule of law, calling the convictions “heinous and extremely evil.”

“The heavy sentence of this newspaper executive for 20 years shows the effectiveness of the law, it promotes justice and it is very gratifying,” said Lee in a statement.

Lin Jian, a spokesman for China’s Foreign Ministry in Beijing, said Lai was “a key organizer and participant in a series of anti-China and disruptive actions in Hong Kong,” and praised the sentence as “reasonable, legal, and lawful,” adding: “There is no room for controversy.”

Lin called on “relevant countries” to respect Hong Kong’s law.

Lai has been prosecuted under China’s new security law

Lai founded Apple Daily, a now-active newspaper known for its critical reporting against the governments of Hong Kong and Beijing. He was arrested in August 2020 under a security law that has been used to detain many of Hong Kong’s leading activists for years.

In their decision, the three judges examined by the government wrote that Lai’s sentence was started because they found him to be the mastermind of these allegations. But they also reduced his sentence because they accepted that Lai’s age, health conditions and solitary confinement would make his prison life more burdensome than other prisoners.

“Lai was undoubtedly the mastermind behind all three of the charges against him, so he wants to be punished severely,” they said. “As for the others, it is difficult to distinguish whether they have a related crime.”

They considered that Lai was serving five years and nine months in a separate fraud case and decided that 18 years of Lai’s sentence in the securities case should be served consecutively to that sentence.

A negative impact on Chinese journalists and academics

Urania Chiu, a law lecturer at Oxford Brookes University, said the case is important in its broad definition of treasonous intent and the use of the term “collaboration with foreign forces” in certain media activities. What is being said is very scary for journalists and those who work in higher education institutions, he said.

“Offering and publishing official criticism of the regime, which often involves dealing with international forums and audiences, can now be easily interpreted as ‘fake,'” Chiu said.

The former Apple Daily employees and activists involved in Lai’s case pleaded guilty, which helped reduce their sentences on Monday. Earlier, they pleaded guilty to charges that prosecutors said they conspired with Lai to ask foreign forces to impose sanctions or embargo, or to take other hostile actions against Hong Kong or China.

The journalists convicted are publisher Cheung Kim-hung, associate publisher Chan Pui-man, editor-in-chief Ryan Law, editor-in-chief Lam Man-chung, English editor-in-chief Fung Wai-kong and editorial writer Yeung Ching-kee. They received sentences ranging from six years and nine to ten months.

The two activists, Andy Li and Chan Tsz-wah, were sentenced to six years and three months, and seven years and three months respectively.

The sentences of Cheung, Chan and Yeung, along with the two activists, were reduced because they were prosecution witnesses and the judges said their testimony had a major impact on Lai’s conviction.

Before sunrise, dozens of people were queuing outside the court building to get seats in court. One of them was Tammy Cheung who was an employee of Apple Daily.

“Whatever happens, it’s the end – at least we’ll know the outcome,” Cheung said before the sentence was handed down.

Lai founded Apple Daily in 1995, two years before the former British colony returned to Chinese rule. Its closure in 2021 shocked the local media scene. Hong Kong is ranked 140th out of 180 in a press freedom index compiled by the press freedom organization Reporters Without Borders in 2025, down from 18th in 2002.