STATEMENT: Jimmy Lai to be unjustly found guilty by Chinese Communist Party show trial
Saturday 27th August – As the trial of Jimmy Lai draws to a close, it is almost certain he will be found guilty by a trial without jury, which has been led by judges operating as an extension of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Lai stands accused of “falsely representing” the subletting of just 1% of the office space of his media company headquarters. These false allegations are a tool for Beijing to silence the free press in Hong Kong, which seeks to end freedom of expression in the city through totalitarian National Security Law.
A copy of the judge-only trial order for Lai, seen by Agence France-Presse, cited the “risk of perverting the course of justice if the trial is conducted with a jury”. In reality, the Chinese Communist Party simply don’t want to risk a fair trial finding Lai and other activists to be innocent.
After years of relentless intimidation by the Chinese Communist Party, the other members of the Apple Daily Seven have been pressured into a guilty plea. Their forced confessions are a result of a corrupt court system, and the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong protests their innocence as well as Lai’s.
The Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong President, Mark L. Clifford, said:
“The trial of Jimmy Lai has been the cornerstone of a thinly veiled campaign to end freedom of the press in Hong Kong. When he is found guilty by this corrupt court, the international community must be resolute in condemning the Chinese Communist Party”.
“The Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong will continue to highlight the injustices carried out by the CCP and will continue to fight for the unconditional release of all political prisoners.”
The Wall Street Journal-Mark Clifford, etc.: “Mr. Lai would have been eligible for release next week after serving the civil-disobedience sentences, but the Chinese Communist Party doesn’t want him to go free. It wants to destroy him and other critics… Any person or company doing business in Hong Kong should take note: Juries in criminal cases there are no longer guaranteed. Property rights are also no longer guaranteed to get judicial review, as the forced liquidation of Next Media and the shuttering of Apple Daily without court involvement demonstrated.
Mr. Lai’s treatment is extreme but not unique… Given that the Basic Law governing Hong Kong promises a free press and freedom of speech, the legal vendetta against him is a massive fraud against the Hong Kong people.”
