"The 78-year-old Lai was sentenced to 20 years in prison after being found guilty in December of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and conspiring with others to publish seditious articles. His co-defendants, who entered guilty pleas to the collusion-related charge, received prison terms ranging from six years and three months to 10 years. Some foreign governments called for the release of Lai, a British citizen."
"The U.N. human rights chief, Volker Türk, said Lai was punished for "exercising rights protected under international law" and that the sentence must be quashed. His office raised concerns that the charges' broad scope risks criminalizing legitimate activities of civil society organizations and journalists. "This is part of a broader repressive trend in Hong Kong, where hundreds have been arrested and prosecuted under these laws," Türk said."
"Hong Kong leader John Lee said Lai had used Apple Daily to "poison" residents and incite hatred. He said Lai deserved the sentence because he openly asked for foreign sanctions against China as well as Hong Kong and harmed their interests. "His heavy sentence of 20 years in prison demonstrated the rule of law, upheld justice and brought great satisfaction to the people," he said."
Lai, 78, was sentenced to 20 years in prison after being found guilty of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and conspiring to publish seditious articles. Co-defendants who pleaded guilty received terms of six years and three months to ten years. Some foreign governments called for Lai's release; China's Foreign Ministry maintained he is a Chinese citizen and urged respect for its sovereignty. The U.N. human rights chief said Lai was punished for "exercising rights protected under international law," warned that the charges risk criminalizing legitimate civil society and media work, and said the sentence must be quashed. Hong Kong officials defended the prosecution; the U.S. State Department called the sentence unjust and urged humanitarian parole.
#jimmy-lai #hong-kong-national-security-law #international-human-rights-concerns #us-china-diplomatic-response
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