UK Prime Minister says Jimmy Lai trial ‘politically motivated’; Hong Kong gov’t slams ‘interference’
Hong Kong Free Press
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has described the national security trial of Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai as politically motivated and intended to silence the man he described as ” a champion of free speech.”
“Jimmy Lai’s prosecution is politically motivated. He has faced multiple prosecutions in an attempt to silence and discredit him,” Sunak wrote in a reply to Lord Patten, the last British governor of Hong Kong, and others who raised Lai’s case.
They include David Alton, a member of UK’s House of Lords, who shared a copy of the letter on social media on Wednesday.
‘Champion of free speech’
Sunak in his reply letter dated January 3 described Lai – the 76-year-old founder of the now-shuttered pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily – as a “champion of free speech” and said his ongoing trial “will remain a priority” for the British government.
Lai, the highest-profile figure to go to trial under the Beijing-imposed national security law, is facing two conspiracy charges of collusion with foreign forces over allegedly calling for international sanctions against mainland China and Hong Kong. The trial could see him jailed for life.
Lai is also accused of conspiring to publish “seditious” materials under a colonial-era sedition law, allegedly by using Apple Daily to incite public hatred towards authorities in the wake of the 2019 protests and unrest.
Sunak’s comment made him the first Western leader to back Lai directly, following the call by his administration for Lai’s release when the trial began in December, which Beijing slammed as “blatant political manoeuvring.”
In his letter, the prime minister said the security law imposed in 2020 “has damaged Hong Kong” and “constitutes a breach of the [1984 Joint Declaration] and has had a chilling effect on the city’s unique way of life.” He said Britain “will continue to stand up for the people of Hong Kong… and to hold China to its international obligations.”
‘Interference’
The Hong Kong government on Thursday said it “strongly opposed” Sunak’s comment, adding that any attempt to interfere with ongoing legal procedures through political, media, or other means should be condemned. In an emailed reply to HKFP, a government spokesperson said that such attempts could amount to contempt of court or perverting the course of justice.
The spokesperson also said that the national security law did not contradict the Sino-British Joint Declaration, an agreement reached by the UK and Beijing which promised that the way of life and civil liberties in the city would remain intact or 50 years after the return of Hong Kong to Chinese rule in 1997.
“The UK had already fulfilled its obligations as specified in the Joint Declaration,” the spokesperson said, urging the UK to stop interfering with Hong Kong affairs, which was a matter for China’s internal politics.
The spokesperson added that the city’s judiciary was protected under the Basic Law, the city’s mini-constitution, to carry out prosecutions. Accusation that prosecutions in the city were politically motivated disregarded the facts and were strongly opposed by the government, the spokesperson said.
Lai’s trial is expected to last for 80 days. So far, the court has heard allegations that the former media mogul was a “mastermind” who orchestrated alleged conspiracies, providing instructions and financial support to his aides to lobby for international sanctions.
The prosecution has named several British nationals, including financier Bill Browder, and human rights activists Benedict Rogers and Luke de Pulford, as Lai’s “co-conspirators” or “agents.” The UK said it had pushed for consular access to Lai, who also holds British citizenship, but to no avail.
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