Trial of Jimmy Lai delayed by Hong Kong

Hong Kong pro-democracy activist and media tycoon Jimmy Lai, right, leaves the Court of Final Appeal during a break in Hong Kong, Dec. 31, 2020. | Source: VOA

A court in Hong Kong has adjourned the trial of newspaper publisher Jimmy Lai until December 13 after the government sought to block a British lawyer from representing Lai.

Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee asked China’s top lawmaking body to decide whether foreign lawyers could participate in national security cases.

Authorities accuse Lai of colluding with foreign forces, and he is also facing a charge of sedition. If convicted, he faces a possible life sentence.

Lai is the founder of the Apple Daily newspaper that was forced to close in 2021 after its assets were frozen under a security law imposed after pro-democracy protests.

Source: VOA News