Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai sentenced to 20 years in prison

A Hong Kong court has sentenced pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai to 20 years in prison under Beijing’s sweeping national security law in a verdict that media and rights groups have described as “cruel and profoundly unjust”.

The sentence on Monday ends Hong Kong’s most high-profile national security prosecution and a legal saga spanning almost five years.

Lai, the founder ⁠of the now-shuttered Apple Daily newspaper, was first arrested in August 2020 and was found guilty late last year on two counts of foreign collusion and one count of seditious publication.

Lai’s sentence of 20 years was within the most severe penalty “band” of 10 years to life imprisonment for offences of a “grave nature”.

The Hong Kong court said Lai’s sentence was enhanced by the fact that he was the “mastermind” and driving force behind foreign collusion conspiracies.

The 78-year-old, who is also a citizen of the United Kingdom, has denied all the charges against him, saying in court that he is a “political prisoner” facing persecution from Beijing.

Given his age, the prison term could keep him behind bars for the rest of his life.

Lai’s family, lawyer, supporters and former colleagues have warned that he could die in prison because he suffers from health conditions, including heart palpitations and high blood pressure.

Before Lai left the courtroom, he looked serious as some people in the public gallery cried.

‘Cruel and profoundly unjust’

In addition to Lai, six former senior Apple Daily staffers, an activist and a paralegal were also sentenced on Monday.

His codefendants received jail terms ranging from six years and three months to 10 years.

The convicted journalists are publisher Cheung Kim-hung, associate publisher Chan Pui-man, editor-in-chief Ryan Law, executive editor-in-chief Lam Man-chung, executive editor-in-chief responsible for English news Fung Wai-kong and editorial writer Yeung Ching-kee.

“The rule of law has been completely shattered ⁠in Hong Kong,” said Jodie Ginsberg, CEO of the Committee to Protect Journalists. “Today’s egregious decision is the final nail in the coffin for freedom of the press in Hong Kong.

“The international community must step up its pressure to free Jimmy Lai if we want press freedom to be respected anywhere in the world.”

Lai’s prosecution has also been criticised by global leaders, including United States President Donald Trump and UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who said he had raised Lai’s case during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing last month.

“The harsh 20-year sentence against 78-year-old Jimmy Lai is effectively a death sentence,” said Elaine Pearson, the Asia director of Human Rights Watch.

“A sentence of this magnitude is both cruel and profoundly unjust.”

The European Union’s foreign affairs spokesperson Anitta Hipper said the union “deplores” Lai’s prison sentence and urges Hong Kong authorities to “stop prosecuting journalists”.

Beijing has previously dismissed such criticism as attempts to smear Hong Kong’s judicial system while Hong Kong authorities maintain that Lai’s case “has nothing to do with freedom of speech and of the press”.

Crackdown on media freedom

Lai was one of the first prominent figures to be arrested under the security law, imposed by Beijing in 2020. Within a year, some of Apple Daily’s senior journalists were also arrested. Police raids, prosecutions and a freeze of its assets forced the newspaper to close in June 2021.

The final edition sold a million copies.

Lai’s daughter, Claire, told The Associated Press news agency that she hopes authorities see the wisdom in releasing her father, a Roman Catholic. She said their faith rests in God. “We will never stop fighting until he is free,” she said.

Before the sentencing, the Hong Kong Free Press reported that police detained a woman outside the West Kowloon court after finding an Apple Daily keychain in her possession. At least two other activists were also searched, including Tsang Kin-shing, a member of the now-disbanded League of Social Democrats.

The sentencing comes against the backdrop of heightened restrictions on Hong Kong media.

The Hong Kong Journalists Association said in 2024 that dozens of journalists faced “systematic and organised” harassment and intimidation, including leaked personal information and death threats.

According to Reporters Without Borders, at least 900 Hong Kong journalists lost their jobs in the four years after the enactment of the national security law in the city.