Shawn Fleetwood writes for the Federalist about disturbing developments in Hong Kong.
America’s propaganda media wouldn’t know what a real “attack” on press freedom would look like if it hit them in the face. But the same can’t be said for Hong Kong billionaire Jimmy Lai.
On Monday, the pro-democracy activist and media tycoon was convicted by the city’s Chinese-backed government on charges of alleged collusion with foreign powers and sedition. Lai was charged under Hong Kong’s national security law, which was enacted several years ago to further criminalize dissent throughout the semi-autonomous region now under the grip of the Chinese Communist Party and its forces. The sedition charge was “under a separate, colonial-era law,” as noted by NPR.
According to CNBC, the Hong Kong court overseeing Lai’s trial — which first began in December 2023 — claimed that Lai “harbored his resentment and hatred of the PRC [People’s Republic of China] for many of his adult years.” It also contended that the 78-year-old Christian and his pro-democracy outlet, Apple Daily, sought a foreign power “‘to impose sanctions or blockade, or engage in other hostile activities’ against Hong Kong or China.” (Notably, “Lai did not deny that he’d called for sanctions earlier, but insisted that he stopped” once the security law was enacted, according to PBS.)
Lai is expected to be sentenced on Jan. 12, 2026, and is facing potential life in prison.
It goes without saying that Lai’s incarceration has little to do with the mischaracterized allegations against him and everything to do with his role in promoting freedom and democracy throughout Hong Kong. As Federalist Senior Contributor Helen Raleigh previously noted in these pages, his media publications (Apple Daily and Next magazine) were instrumental in “fostering political and civic engagement of the city’s seven million residents and helping mobilize hundreds of thousands, and eventually millions to take part in the city’s various pro-democracy protests between 2003 and 2019.”
