Hong Kong publisher Jimmy Lai will not be tried for his alleged violation of China’s national security law until the end of 2023, after his British lawyer was denied a visa extension.
Lai, 75, was sentenced to 69 months in prison last week for fraud after an already lengthy probation. He was scheduled to enter court again on Tuesday to stand a higher-stakes trial under China’s national security law.
However, the trial was postponed after lawyer Tim Owen was denied a work visa extension.
CRITIC OF CHINA’S COMMUNIST PARTY, MEDIA MOGUL JIMMY LAI SENTENCED TO 69 MONTHS IN PRISON
Hong Kong pro-democracy activist and media mogul Jimmy Lai arrives at the Court of Final Appeal in Hong Kong on 31 December 2020.
(AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
Chinese officials say Lai’s use of a non-Chinese lawyer is a national security risk. This complaint was rejected by Hong Kong’s highest court, but the decision is now being examined by Beijing with no verdict so far.
Now, Lai will be forced to wait until September 2023 before he can stand trial again.
Media mogul e opponent of the Communist Party of China was originally charged with fraud on December 3, 2019, for violating office space lease terms for Next Digital, the media company he founded.
In addition to the prison sentence, Lai was ordered to pay a fine of approximately $256,837.
HONG KONG MEDIA TYCOON JIMMY LAI BAIL RELEASED
Red flags are flown in front of the Great Hall of the People ahead of the two annual sessions on March 4, 2022 in Beijing, China.
(VCG/VCG via Getty Images)
Lai was charged with another more serious charge on December 12, 2019, under the sweeping national security law imposed by Beijing. He was arrested on charges of collusion with foreign forces and endangering national security. This is the process that will now take place in 2023.
Fr Robert Sirico, a Roman Catholic priest and personal friend of Lai, told Fox News Digital that the Chinese Communist Party’s lawsuits against the media titan revealed his commitment to silencing human rights activists.
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“As if more evidence is needed, [last week’s] The phony ruling is evidence of China’s continued erosion of basic human freedoms, which the entire world has witnessed in China in recent weeks,” Sirico said.
Lai converted to Roman Catholicism late in life and has spoken candidly about the role of his faith in his activism against the CCP.
Pro-democracy activist and Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai is escorted by correctional service officers into a prison van before appearing in court in Hong Kong on December 12, 2020.
(AP Photo/Kin Cheung)
“This, along with an upcoming second trial over the national security law […] which could result in a life sentence for Mr. Lai, will prompt honest people to pray and contact the UK government to ask China to release an innocent British citizen,” the priest added.
Lai is one of a string of pro-democracy activists and supporters arrested by Hong Kong police in recent years as authorities step up their suppression of dissent in the semi-autonomous territory of China.
