Jimmy Lai found guilty in landmark Hong Kong national security case

Jimmy Lai, a media mogul and pro-democracy activist, has been convicted by the Hong Kong High Court on three charges related to undermining the national security of China.

The 78-year-old activist was found guilty of three charges:

• Two counts of conspiring with foreign forces to threaten national security
• One count of publishing seditious material

Arrested in December 2020 during anti-government protests in Hong Kong, Lai pleaded not guilty to all the charges. However, after conviction, he now faces the possibility of a lifetime in jail.

A three-judge panel, consisting of Judge Esther Toh, Alex Lee and Susana D’Almada Remedios, issued an 855-page verdict. Judge Toh accused Lai of asking the United States (U.S.) to act against the People’s Republic of China.

The verdict declared the media mogul of being a “mastermind” of a criminal conspiracy and harboring anti-PRC sentiments for many adult years.

According to Al Jazeera, the case was seen as a test case of the “one country, two systems” principle for the former British colony that was returned to China in 1997.

The principle asserts that Hong Kong operates autonomously with its own administration and governance, separate from Beijing. 

However, in recent years critics have argued that China is exerting control over the region and influencing the administrative decisions.

Human Rights groups have slammed the decision against Lai, with many declaring it as “unlawful”, a “mis-carriage of justice”, and “an act of prosecution”.