Canada condemns Jimmy Lai’s conviction in Hong Kong, calls for his release – National

Canada’s foreign minister has condemned the “politically motivated” sentencing of Hong Kong democracy activist and media magnate Jimmy Lai, calling for his immediate release from prison.

Lai, a critic of Beijing, was found guilty on Monday of violating Hong Kong’s strict security laws imposed by China. The 78-year-old man has spent five years in custody awaiting trial, and now faces the possibility of spending the rest of his life behind bars.

“Canada condemns the politically motivated prosecution of Jimmy Lai under the National Security Act in Hong Kong and demands his immediate release,” said Foreign Minister Anita Anand in a statement provided by her office to Global News.

“We continue to express our concern about the erosion of rights, freedoms and independence enshrined in the Basic Law of Hong Kong.”

Three federal judges found Lai, the founder of the now-defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, guilty of conspiracy to collaborate with foreign forces to endanger national security and conspiracy to publish inflammatory articles. He denied all charges.

Lai was arrested in August 2020 under a Beijing-imposed national security law that was implemented following mass anti-government protests in 2019. He was previously convicted of several minor charges related to alleged fraud and his actions during that year of protest.

The case, held in Hong Kong without a jury, has been closely watched for its impact on media freedom and judicial independence since China took control of the territory in recent years.

Lai has spent much of the past five years in solitary confinement, and his family said his health declined rapidly.

Lai’s daughter Claire has publicly vowed that her father has no intention of returning to activism if he is released.

“He just wants to be with his family. He wants to dedicate his life to serving our Lord, and he wants to dedicate all his days to his family,” he told The Associated Press in an interview in Washington on Monday. “My father is not a man who operates in an illegal place.”

His comments echoed a Washington Post op-ed he wrote last week in which he said “Lai’s days of war are over” and that he “will leave Hong Kong and no longer be a threat to the government.” The piece also warned Beijing not to make Lai a “martyr of freedom” by letting him die in prison.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that he had raised Lai’s case with Chinese President Xi Jinping, telling reporters at the White House that he felt “very bad” about the decision.

“I spoke to President Xi about it, and I asked to consider his release,” Trump said. “He is not well, he is old and he is not well, I have made that request, we will see what will happen.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in a statement late Monday, called for Lai’s immediate release on “humanitarian grounds.”

“The guilty verdict in Mr. Lai’s security case shows Beijing’s enforcement of laws to silence those who want to protect freedom of speech and other fundamental rights – rights that China pledged to uphold in the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984,” he said.

“Mr Lai is not the only one facing punishment for protecting these rights.”

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said his government has made securing the release of Lai, who is a British citizen, a priority.

Canadian activists in the Hong Kong pro-democracy movement are calling on Canada to raise Lai’s case with Beijing.

Edmund Leung, chairman of the Vancouver Society in Support of Democratic Movement, urged the federal government to “move beyond rhetoric of concern and take concrete action” in a statement on Monday that also criticized the decision and China’s influence on Hong Kong’s legal and political systems.

“Jimmy Lai’s issue must be raised directly at the highest political levels, in cooperation with international partners,” he said. “These cases can only be solved on a leader-by-leader basis, and reasonable pressure must be applied to see that there are real consequences for the ongoing injustice.”

Andy Wong, president of the Ontario non-profit Canada-Hong Kong Link, said in a statement that Canada “has long called for a commitment to human rights, press freedom and the rule of law. Now is the time to act.”

“The world must not look away while an elderly prisoner of conscience is slowly being destroyed in prison,” he added.

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Prime Minister Mark Carney and his government are seeking to restore economic and diplomatic cooperation with China as Canada seeks to diversify its trade relationship in the face of US tariffs.

The move marks a departure from Ottawa after years of sour relations under former prime minister Justin Trudeau.

Anand, who met with Chinese officials this fall, said it was important to pursue a “strategic relationship” to “have the necessary dialogue to address Canada’s issues.”

In the interview, Wong said he was happy to see Anand’s criticism of Lai’s decision, but added that it also proves that China and Hong Kong are “not safe places” for business and trade. He also questioned Ottawa’s efforts to “reset” the relationship.

“Are we going to reward China for what it is doing (by doing business with it) I don’t think that is right,” he said.

Leung, Wong and other Canadian groups asked Ottawa to impose sanctions on senior Hong Kong officials after arrest warrants and warrants were issued against 19 overseas activists, including three Canadian citizens and three others with ties to Canada.

Anand and Public Security Minister Gary Anandasangaree denounced the arrest warrants as “international repression” and called on Hong Kong to repeal its national security law in a joint statement in July.

The G7 also issued a statement criticizing these mandates in August. No statement suggested sanctions were possible.

In its ruling on Monday, a Hong Kong court said Lai had extended a “constant invitation” to the US to help bring down the Chinese government under the pretext of helping Hong Kongers.

Lai’s lawyers admitted during the trial that he had called for foreign sanctions before the national security law went into effect, but insisted he dropped the calls to comply with the law.

But the judges ruled that Lai never wavered in his aim to undermine China’s ruling Communist Party, “continuing even in less obvious ways.”

Lai testified for 52 days in his defense during the 152-day trial.

Apple Daily, highly critical of the Hong Kong and Beijing governments, was forced to close in 2021 after police raided its newsroom and arrested senior journalists, and authorities froze its assets.

In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said China has expressed its disapproval of legal violations by “certain countries,” urging them to respect Hong Kong’s legal system.

Hong Kong authorities have also dismissed concerns about Lai’s deteriorating health, despite reports from his family of rapid weight loss and heart problems.

“Lai’s conviction is a fair one,” said Steve Li, the chief executive. of the National Security Department of the Hong Kong police, told reporters outside the court building.

-From files from the Associated Press