Media tycoon Jimmy Lai was sentenced to a year in prison in Hong Kong on Friday for his part in demonstrations against Chinese influence.
Lai, along with 12 other activists, was convicted by a court of organizing “unlawful rallies” in August 2019. This case involved his role in organizing a mass demonstration on August 18, involving at least 300,000 people. .
Martin Lee Chu-ming, the leader of the Hong Kong Democratic Party, was sentenced to 11 months in prison on Friday for being involved in the same illegal gathering.
Lai was arrested in August 2020. This happened a month after the introduction of a Chinese security law in Hong Kong. He was released on bail two days later, but was remanded in custody pending the judge’s verdict.
72-year-old Lai is the founder of Apple Daily, a pro-democratic Chinese-language newspaper in Hong Kong and Taiwan. The billionaire is known as a staunch critic of Beijing.
Large-scale demonstrations against Chinese security law
In Hong Kong, there were widespread demonstrations in 2019 and 2020 against the security law passed on July 1, 2020. The law allows China to take tougher action against opposition and activists. The law makes it easier to extradite people.
Hundreds of opponents of the Chinese regime have been arrested and sentenced since the introduction of the security law.
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