The IPI global network condemns in the strongest possible terms today’s conviction of IPI World Press Freedom Hero Jimmy Lai by a Hong Kong court, and calls for his immediate and unconditional release.
After a nearly two-year-long trial marred by repeated delays and postponements, a three-judge panel in a Hong Kong courtroom today found Lai guilty of sedition and “colluding with foreign forces,” charges stemming from the territory’s draconian Beijing-imposed National Security Law.
Lai, the founder of now-shuttered pro-democracy outlet Apple Daily, has been continuously imprisoned for five years, as Hong Kong authorities have waged a multi-year campaign to silence him. Much of his imprisonment has been spent in solitary confinement in a maximum-security prison cell with no natural light.
Lai was first arrested in August 2020 in connection to Apple Daily’s extensive coverage of a wave of pro-democracy protests that swept Hong Kong between 2019-2020, only weeks after the passage of China’s new National Security Law for the territory aimed at suppressing the protests. He has since become the most prominent example of how the 2020 national security law has been weaponized against free expression in China.
Lai, who turned 78 last week, suffers from diabetes and hypertension, and has lost a significant amount of weight over his yearslong incarceration. During his final appearances in court as his trial wrapped up this summer, Lai was given a heart monitor after experiencing heart palpitations. In recent weeks, Lai’s children have raised the alarm about his increasingly precarious health.
“Jimmy Lai’s conviction shows how Hong Kong’s courts have been weaponized to crush independent journalism and voices,” said Scott Griffen, Executive Director of the International Press Institute. “Lai’s inhumane imprisonment also lays bare how far the Chinese authorities will go to silence independent information and ideas.”
Griffen added: “His unwavering commitment to press freedom — despite years of brutal conditions — has made him a powerful symbol for media communities worldwide. It is long past time for his inhumane suffering to end. He must be released.”
Lai’s case has drawn global attention, with many government leaders calling for his release. In November 2024, the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found Lai to be unlawfully and arbitrarily detained.
The campaign against Lai has been widely criticized by members of the United States and United Kingdom governments. During an October meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea, U.S. President Donald Trump made a personal appeal for Lai’s release, while UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said Lai’s release is a priority for his government.