The long-awaited trial against pro-democracy activist and Hong Kong media magnate Jimmy Lai began this Monday in the former British colony with maximum media attention and amid a large security device.
An imposing police presence starred at the beginning of the trial, Efe confirmed, in which the prosecution accuses Lai, 76, of committing crimes against national security for which he could be sentenced to life imprisonment.
The tycoon arrived at the West Kowloon magistrate's complex in a Hong Kong Department of Correctional Services vehicle around 7:30 a.m. local time (23:30 GMT on Sunday) for a trial that is expected to last several months.
Upon arrival, dozens of people were queuing to occupy some of the seats reserved for the public, although minutes later practically only the Police and the press were waiting outside the magistracy.
Several activists gathered to attend the start of the trial, including veteran Alexandra Wong, who held the British flag with which she became known in the city during the protests that hit Hong Kong in 2019.
“I am here to support Jimmy Lai. He has defended everything for Hong Kong, for publishing the truth. I go out every day for democracy and freedom. I am prepared to die, I accept it. China and Hong Kong are very dangerous now “Wong told Efe while waiting outside the court, surrounded by police officers.
Lai and his three companies face three charges under the strict National Security Law that Beijing imposed on Hong Kong, including “collusion with foreign forces” and “sedition.”
Lai is also accused of calling for international sanctions against the city and against the central authorities in Beijing, as well as participating in “inciting public hatred” in the massive anti-government protests that hit the city in 2019.
This is the first criminal trial held in the semi-autonomous territory for a crime of collusion with foreign forces, in a process that has generated great international controversy.
Aside from these charges, Lai is serving another sentence of 5 years and 9 months in prison for a crime of fraud for alleged violations in the lease of his media company, a sentence imposed after spending two years in preventive detention and as a culmination of a long series of legal cases against him.
The founder of the now defunct pro-democratic newspaper 'Apple Daily' has been in prison since December 2020, and has pleaded not guilty to all the crimes accused of him.
Six other defendants in the same case, all employees of the newspaper, have admitted their guilt and, in addition, three of them will testify against Lai.
The hearing, which has been postponed three times by the Hong Kong authorities, is expected to last 80 days and will be held without a jury.
Although the leaders of Beijing and the semi-autonomous region have vindicated “the solidity of the rule of law and the equal treatment reserved for citizens before the law”, Jimmy Lai's son, the editor Sebastien Lai, has denounced the international community that the trial is “a farce.” EFE
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