US and UK want China to release Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai. Hong Kong’s pro-democracy lawyer will go on trial from Monday for “crimes against national security”.
Lai, 76, has been in custody since 2020. He is critical of China and could face life in prison for violating a controversial security law.
Beijing imposed the law in the semi-autonomous region of Hong Kong in 2020. The law allows China to crack down on opposition parties and activists.
Lai owned a Hong Kong newspaper Apple Daily, which is now discontinued. As for China, she has colluded with powerful foreign countries. Hong Kong’s prominent pro-democracy campaigner has been prosecuted for “crimes against national security”.
The European Union is voicing its concerns, Beijing is talking about defamation and interference
“As a prominent and outspoken journalist and publisher, Jimmy Loy has been the target of an operation aimed at restricting his freedom of expression and association,” British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said in a statement.
Cameron met the former publisher’s son Sebastian Lye in London last Tuesday. China reacted angrily to this. Beijing says the UK has “evil intentions” with Hong Kong. The city was a British colony.
The US has also demanded immediate release. Since the introduction of the Security Act, pro-democracy movements have been suppressed in Hong Kong.
“The United States condemns the prosecution of pro-democracy activist and media owner Jimmy Lai in Hong Kong under Chinese-imposed security laws,” a US State Department spokesman said.
The European Union and the United Nations have also expressed concern about Lai. Beijing called the criticism slander and interference.
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