The 76-year-old Lai, founder of the now-defunct pro-democratic and often Peking-critical newspaper Apple Daily, is on trial under the controversial national security law that China introduced in Hong Kong in 2020.
Jimmy Lai is accused of collaborating with foreign forces, which can lead to a sentence of up to life imprisonment. The case revolves around articles in Apple Daily that supported the large, sometimes violent, Peking-critical protests in Hong Kong in 2019.
"Delivering freedom"
Apple Daily's core values are actually the core values of the people in Hong Kong, said Lai in his testimony, mentioning, among other things, the rule of law, freedom of speech, religious freedom, and the pursuit of democracy.
He stated that he had entered the media industry to "participate in delivering freedom", and added that "the more you know, the freer you are". At the same time, he emphasized that he opposes violence and is not an advocate for Hong Kong's independence, which he called "too crazy to think about".
Jimmy Lai has been imprisoned since December 2020 and has been convicted in five different court cases, including for organizing and participating in marches during the protests in 2019. He has not testified in any of the previous trials.
Criticism from Western countries
A number of Western countries and human rights organizations have criticized the trials and demanded that Lai be released. Hong Kong and Peking have rejected the criticism.
As recently as Tuesday, 45 democracy activists were sentenced to prison by a court in Hong Kong. They were found guilty of subversive activities under the same security law as Lai.
