Jimmy Lai
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Lai Chee-ying ( zh, t=黎智英; born 8 December 1947), also known as Jimmy Lai, is a Hong Kong businessman and politician. He founded Giordano, an Asian clothing retailer,
Next Digital Next Digital Limited (), previously known as Next Media Limited, was the largest listed Media of Hong Kong, media company in Hong Kong. Founded by Jimmy Lai, it had 2,095 employees as of 30 Sep 2020. The media outlet had a user base of 5.0 mil ...
(formerly Next Media), a Hong Kong-listed media company, and the popular newspaper ''
Apple Daily ''Apple Daily'' ( zh, t=蘋果日報, j=ping4 gwo2 jat6 bou3) was a Chinese-language newspaper published in Hong Kong from 1995 to 2021. Founded by Jimmy Lai and part of Next Media, ''Apple Daily'' was known for its sensational headlines, ...
''. He is one of the main contributors to the
pro-democracy camp The pro-democracy camp, also known as the pan-democracy camp, is a political alignment in Hong Kong that supports increased democracy, namely the universal suffrage of the Chief Executive and the Legislative Council as given by the Basic La ...
, especially to the Democratic Party. Although he is known as a Hong Kong political figure, he has been a British national since 1996. Lai is also an art collector. A prominent critic of the
Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...
who met with U.S. Vice President
Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...
, Secretary of State
Mike Pompeo Michael Richard Pompeo (; born December 30, 1963) is an American retired politician who served in the First presidency of Donald Trump#Administration, first administration of Donald Trump as director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) fr ...
, and National Security Advisor
John Bolton John Robert Bolton (born November 20, 1948) is an American attorney, diplomat, Republican Party (United States), Republican consultant, and political commentator. He served as the 25th United States ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to ...
in July 2019 during the Hong Kong protests, Lai was arrested on 10 August 2020 by the
Hong Kong police The Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) is the primary law enforcement, investigative agency, and largest Hong Kong Disciplined Services, disciplined service under the Security Bureau (Hong Kong), Security Bureau of Hong Kong. Pursuant to the one c ...
on charges of violating the territory's new national security law, an action which prompted widespread criticism. Lai was allowed bail on 12 August, but on 3 December, Lai was accused of fraud and his bail was revoked. The court decided to jail Lai until April 2021, marking the first time Lai has been detained. Lai regarded his imprisonment as "the summit of his own life". In December 2020, Lai was awarded the "Freedom of Press Award" by
Reporters Without Borders Reporters Without Borders (RWB; ; RSF) is an international non-profit and non-governmental organisation, non-governmental organization headquartered in Paris, which focuses on safeguarding the right to freedom of information. It describes its a ...
for his role in founding ''Apple Daily'', a news outlet under Lai's pro-democracy leadership that "still dares to openly criticise the Chinese regime and which widely covered last year's pro-democracy protests." On 29 December, Lai resigned from his roles with Next Digital as director and chairman of the board. In April 2021, he was sentenced to an additional 14 months in prison for organizing illegal protests. As of September 2023, Lai remains imprisoned in
solitary confinement Solitary confinement (also shortened to solitary) is a form of imprisonment in which an incarcerated person lives in a single Prison cell, cell with little or no contact with other people. It is a punitive tool used within the prison system to ...
at Hong Kong's Stanley Prison. On 19 August 2024, a motion for an
appeal In law, an appeal is the process in which Legal case, cases are reviewed by a higher authority, where parties request a formal change to an official decision. Appeals function both as a process for error correction as well as a process of cla ...
was rejected. In November 2024, Lai testified that he might have asked U.S. officials to sanction Beijing and Hong Kong.


Early life

Lai was born in Canton (
Guangzhou Guangzhou, Chinese postal romanization, previously romanized as Canton or Kwangchow, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Guangdong Provinces of China, province in South China, southern China. Located on the Pearl River about nor ...
),
China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...
, on 8 December 1947. At the age of 12, he entered Hong Kong as a stowaway on a boat. Upon his arrival, Lai began work as a child labourer in a garment factory for a wage of the equivalent of US$8 per month.


Business career


Giordano

Lai's factory work saw him rise to the position of factory manager. In 1975, Lai used his year-end bonus on Hong Kong stocks to raise cash and bought a bankrupt garment factory, Comitex, where he began producing sweaters. Customers included J.C. Penney,
Montgomery Ward Montgomery Ward is the name of two successive U.S. retail corporations. The original Montgomery Ward & Co. was a mail-order business and later a department store chain that operated between 1872 and 2001; its common nickname was "Monkey Wards". ...
, and other U.S. retailers. In 1981, Lai founded Asian clothing retailer Giordano. By rewarding sellers with financial incentives in Hong Kong, he built the chain into an Asia-wide retailer. Giordano was said to have more than 8,000 employees in 2,400 shops in 30 countries. In 1996, Lai sold his stake in Giordano, leaving the garment industry for media and politics, keeping Comitex active as a shell company. After his arrest under National Security Law in August 2020, Lai tried to sell his asset in Hong Kong, including the entire floor of Tai Ping Industrial Centre. The current owner of the property is Comitex Knitters Ltd. Comitex, along with other private companies controlled by Lai, was reported to be the financial tools for his political activities and donations.


Other companies

In 1997 Lai put up the capital for his twin sister, Si Wai, to acquire numerous properties in the Southern Ontario wine and vacation region of Niagara-on-the-Lake. The Lais Group of Companies now owns additional properties in Caledon and
Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...
, both in Ontario. Lai remains the owner despite his arrest. During the
dot-com boom The dot-com bubble (or dot-com boom) was a stock market bubble that ballooned during the late-1990s and peaked on Friday, March 10, 2000. This period of market growth coincided with the widespread adoption of the World Wide Web and the Intern ...
of the late 1990s, Lai started an Internet-based grocery retailer that offered home delivery services, adMart. The business expanded its product scope beyond groceries to include electronics and office supplies, but was shut down after losing between $100 and $150 million. Lai attributed this business failure to overconfidence and a lack of viable business strategy. In 2011, Next Media reportedly sold 70 per cent stake of Next Media's subsidiary Colored World Holdings (CWH, incorporated in the British Virgin Islands) to Sum Tat Ventures (STV, incorporated in the British Virgin Islands), a private company 100 per cent owned by Jimmy Lai. CWH was estimated to have net asset value of US$6.1 million. STV paid US$100 million in cash for 70 per cent stake of CWH. In 2013, STV paid another US$20 million for the remaining 30 per cent stake of CWH. CWH itself had its assets sold in 2011, and ceased operation in 2011. In total, STV paid US$120 million in cash for CWH. On Lai's Form 3B disclosure form, STV is listed as having the same correspondence address as Next Media in Hong Kong. Near the end of 2013, Lai spent approximately US$73 million (or NT$2.3 billion) to purchase a 2 per cent stake (~17 million shares) in Taiwanese electronics manufacturer
HTC HTC Corporation ( zh, t=宏達國際電子股份有限公司, p=Hóngdá Guójì Diànzǐ Gǔfèn Yǒuxiàn Gōngsī, first=t), or High Tech Computer Corporation (abbreviated and trading as HTC), is a Taiwanese consumer electronics corporatio ...
.


Activities in Myanmar

In 2014, leaked documents showed Jimmy Lai paid former US deputy defence secretary and former World Bank president
Paul Wolfowitz Paul Dundes Wolfowitz (born December 22, 1943) is an American political scientist and diplomat who served as the 10th President of the World Bank, U.S. Deputy Secretary of Defense, U.S. Ambassador to Indonesia, and dean of Paul H. Nitze Scho ...
US$75,000 for his help with projects in Myanmar. Lai also reportedly remitted approximately US$213,000 to businessman Phone Win, with whom Lai's Hong Kong-registered Best Combo company reportedly collaborated on Yangon real estate projects.


Media career

Lai pioneered a reader-centric philosophy with
paparazzi Paparazzi (singular form paparazzo) are independent photographers who take pictures of high-profile people, such as actors, musicians, athletes, politicians, and other celebrities who go about their daily life routines. Paparazzi are known f ...
journalism in Hong Kong based on publications such as ''
USA Today ''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...
'' and ''
The Sun The Sun is the star at the centre of the Solar System. It is a massive, nearly perfect sphere of hot Plasma (physics), plasma, heated to incandescence by nuclear fusion reactions in its core, radiating the energy from its surface mainly as ...
''. His best-selling ''Next Magazine'' and ''Apple Daily'' newspaper featured a mix of racy tabloid material and news items oriented to the mass market with plenty of colour and graphics that attracted a wide range of readers, some of whom were also critics of Lai and his ideology.


Hong Kong publications

Owing to the
1989 Tiananmen Square protests and massacre The Tiananmen Square protests, known within China as the June Fourth Incident, were student-led demonstrations held in Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, lasting from 15 April to 4 June 1989. After weeks of unsuccessful attempts between t ...
, Lai became an advocate of democracy and critic of the People's Republic of China government. In 1990, he began publishing '' Next Magazine'', which combined tabloid sensationalism with hard-hitting political and business reporting. He proceeded to found other magazines, including '' Sudden Weekly'' (), ''Eat & Travel Weekly'' (), ''Trading Express/Auto Express'' () and the youth-oriented '' Easy Finder'' (). In 1995, as the Hong Kong handover approached, Lai founded ''
Apple Daily ''Apple Daily'' ( zh, t=蘋果日報, j=ping4 gwo2 jat6 bou3) was a Chinese-language newspaper published in Hong Kong from 1995 to 2021. Founded by Jimmy Lai and part of Next Media, ''Apple Daily'' was known for its sensational headlines, ...
'', a newspaper
start-up A startup or start-up is a company or project undertaken by an entrepreneur to seek, develop, and validate a scalable business model. While entrepreneurship includes all new businesses including self-employment and businesses that do not intend ...
that he financed with $100 million of his own money. The newspaper's circulation rose to 400,000 copies by 1997, which was the territory's second largest among 60 other newspapers. According to Lai, he aspired to maintain
freedom of speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The rights, right to freedom of expression has been r ...
in Hong Kong through ''Apple Daily''. In addition to promoting democracy, Lai's publications often ruffled feathers of fellow Hong Kong tycoons by exposing their personal foibles and relations with local government. In 2003, ahead of the record-breaking pro-democracy protests in Hong Kong during July, the cover of ''Next Magazine'' featured a photo-montage of the territory's embattled
chief executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...
Tung Chee-Hwa Tung Chee-hwa (; born May 29, 1937) is a Hong Kong businessman and retired politician who served as the first Chief Executive of Hong Kong between 1997 and 2005, upon the transfer of sovereignty on 1 July. He served as a vice chairman of th ...
taking a pie in the face. The magazine urged readers to take to the streets while ''Apple Daily'' distributed stickers calling for Tung to resign. In 2006, ''Sudden Weekly'' and ''Next Magazine'' ranked first and second in circulation for Hong Kong's magazine market. ''Apple Daily'' became the No. 2 newspaper in Hong Kong. In 2020, Lai launched an English version of ''Apple Daily''.


Taiwan publications

Lai launched Taiwanese editions of ''Next Magazine'' in 2001 and ''Apple Daily'' in 2003, taking on heavily established rivals who made considerable effort to thwart him. Rival publishers pressed advertisers to boycott and distributors not to undertake home delivery. His Taiwan offices were vandalised on numerous occasions. As the publications grew to have the largest readership in their category, the advertising boycotts ended. In October 2006, Lai launched ''
Sharp Daily ''Sharp Daily'' is a Chinese-language free daily tabloid newspaper, published in Taipei, Taiwan, and previously in Hong Kong, by Next Digital. Taiwan edition Launched on 24 October 2006 as a rival to ''Cola News'' (可樂新聞 Pinyin:Kělè ...
'' (Shuang Bao in Mandarin), a free daily newspaper targeting Taipei commuters. The company also launched '' Me! Magazine'' in Taiwan. In building Taiwan's most popular newspaper, ''Apple Daily'', and magazine, ''Next Magazine'', Lai's racy publications were described as having a great impact on the country's hitherto staid media culture.


Publication challenges

Lai's publications remained banned in China since their inception. The ban originated from Lai's 1994 newspaper column, where he told Premier of the PRC
Li Peng Li Peng (; 20 October 1928 – 22 July 2019) was a Chinese politician who served as the 4th premier of China from 1987 to 1998, and as the chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, China's top legislative body, from ...
, seen as a driving force behind the Tiananmen Square crackdown, to "drop dead". He also called the
Chinese Communist Party The Communist Party of China (CPC), also translated into English as Chinese Communist Party (CCP), is the founding and One-party state, sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Founded in 1921, the CCP emerged victorious in the ...
"a monopoly that charges a premium for lousy service". China's government retaliated against Lai by starting a shutdown of Giordano shops, prompting him to sell out of the company to save it. In addition to having his publications banned in China, businesses had distanced themselves from placing advertisements in ''Apple Daily'' to avoid retaliation from the Chinese government. Lai had frequently faced hostility from the many Beijing-backed tycoons, including attempts to force supplier boycotts of his companies. Major Hong Kong property developers and top companies advertised only in competing publications not owned by Lai. He also faced a lengthy battle to list on the
Hong Kong Stock Exchange The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (, SEHK, also known as Hong Kong Stock Exchange) is a stock exchange based in Hong Kong. It is one of the largest stock exchanges in Asia and the List of major stock exchanges, 9th largest globally by market ...
, which Lai sidestepped through a
reverse takeover A reverse takeover (RTO), reverse merger, or reverse IPO is the acquisition of a public company by a private company so that the private company can bypass the lengthy and complex process of going public. Sometimes, conversely, the public compa ...
. He managed to list the company in 1999 by acquiring Paramount Publishing Group in October of that year. In 2020, Apple Daily published a falsehood-ridden 64-page report produced by Typhoon Investigations alleging Joe Biden's son
Hunter Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, ...
had a "problematic" connection with the Chinese Communist Party, which was widely cited by far-right influencers such as
Steve Bannon Stephen Kevin Bannon (born November 27, 1953) is an American media executive, political strategist, and former investment banker. He served as the White House's chief strategist for the first seven months of president Donald Trump's first ...
. An
NBC News NBC News is the news division of the American broadcast television network NBC. The division operates under NBCUniversal Media Group, a division of NBCUniversal, which is itself a subsidiary of Comcast. The news division's various operations r ...
report linked the Typhoon Investigations to a fake "intelligence firm" and claimed that the author of the document, a self-identified Swiss security analyst named Martin Aspen, was a "fabricated identity". The original poster of the document, Christopher Balding, admitted that he wrote parts of the document and later stated that the document had been commissioned by ''Apple Daily''. Lai later said that he had personally "nothing to do with" the report, but he admitted his senior executive, Mark Simon, had "worked with the project". Simon resigned following the NBC report and apologised for having "allowed damage to Jimmy on a matter he was completely in the dark on". The report was among many incidents many US democracy experts believe was instrumental in the cause of the 2021 Capitol attack there. Lai admitted on 25 November 2024 that he told Cheung Kim-hung about featuring more negative news in an English edition of Apple Daily, which was launched in May 2020, about a month before the enactment of the Beijing-imposed security law.


Political activities

Lai is a longtime champion of the Hong Kong pro-democracy movement. According to Lai, ''
The Road to Serfdom ''The Road to Serfdom'' is a book by the Austrian-British economist and philosopher Friedrich Hayek. In the book, Hayek of the danger of tyranny that inevitably results from government control of economic decision-making through central planning ...
'' by
Friedrich Hayek Friedrich August von Hayek (8 May 1899 – 23 March 1992) was an Austrian-born British academic and philosopher. He is known for his contributions to political economy, political philosophy and intellectual history. Hayek shared the 1974 Nobe ...
inspired him to fight for freedom. His advocacy had been expressed through his business ventures, such as distributing Giordano t-shirts with portraits of student leaders. His high-profile support for the pro-democracy movements came under strong condemnation from the Chinese government. As the proprietor of one of few that journals that has remained staunchly supportive of the pro-democracy cause, challenging Chinese Communist Party rule, Lai is considered an "anti-China troublemaker". In May 2020, Lai told CNN news that US president
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
was "the only one who can save us" from China, with Apple Daily publishing a similar plea addressed to Trump the same month. In the
2020 United States elections Elections in the United States, Elections were held in the United States on November 3, 2020. The Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party's nominee, former Vice presidents of the United States, vice president Joe Biden, defeated incu ...
, Lai backed Trump, praising the latter for his "hardline approach" to Beijing. On 13 December 2014, Lai was one of the pro-democracy leaders arrested during the clearance of the Admiralty protest site of the
Umbrella Movement The Umbrella Movement () was a political movement that emerged during the 2014 Hong Kong protests. Its name arose from the use of umbrellas as a tool for nonviolent resistance, passive resistance to the Hong Kong Police Force's use of pepper ...
. On the following day, Lai announced he would step down as head of Next Media "to spend more time with his family and further pursue his personal interests." Lai had been the target of hostile attacks and disturbances, including the leaving of machetes, axes and threatening messages in his driveway. He had been rammed by a car, and his home was firebombed several times, most recently in 2019. Lai's aide and Next Media spokesman Mark Simon condemned these attacks and stated, "This is a continual effort to intimidate the press in Hong Kong. This is raw and pure intimidation." Some activists felt that the
Hong Kong Police Force The Hong Kong Police Force (HKPF) is the primary law enforcement, investigative agency, and largest Hong Kong Disciplined Services, disciplined service under the Security Bureau (Hong Kong), Security Bureau of Hong Kong. Pursuant to the one c ...
and the
Hong Kong government The Government of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (commonly known as the Hong Kong Government or HKSAR Government) is the Executive (government), executive authorities of Hong Kong. It was established on 1 July 1997, following the ...
, which have been Chinese-controlled since the handover in 1997, did not always follow up on these misconducts against Lai, and that culprits are rarely found. During the early hours of 12 January 2015, two masked men hurled petrol bombs at Lai's home on Kadoorie Avenue in
Kowloon Tong Kowloon Tong () is an area of Hong Kong located in Kowloon. The majority of the area is in the Kowloon City District. Its exaclocationis south of the Lion Rock, north of Boundary Street, east of the East Rail line and west of Grampian Road. It ...
. At the same time, a petrol bomb was thrown at the
Next Media Next Digital Limited (), previously known as Next Media Limited, was the largest listed media company in Hong Kong. Founded by Jimmy Lai, it had 2,095 employees as of 30 Sep 2020. The media outlet had a user base of 5.0 million monthly unique ...
headquarters in
Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate (, branded as ) is located in the southeast of the Tseung Kwan O, Tseung Kwan O New Town, Sai Kung District in Hong Kong. Location Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate has an area of 75 ha (other sources mention 86 h ...
. The fires were extinguished by security guards. The perpetrators fled and two cars used in the attacks were found torched in Shek Kip Mei and
Cheung Sha Wan Cheung Sha Wan () is an area between Lai Chi Kok and Sham Shui Po in New Kowloon, Hong Kong. It is mainly residential to the north and south, with an industrial area in between. Administratively it is part of Sham Shui Po District, which al ...
. The crimes were denounced as an "attack on press freedom". Between July and November 2019 Lai was able to meet with US Vice President
Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...
and later with US House Speaker
Nancy Pelosi Nancy Patricia Pelosi ( ; ; born March 26, 1940) is an American politician who was the List of Speakers of the United States House of Representatives, 52nd speaker of the United States House of Representatives, serving from 2007 to 2011 an ...
to discuss the Hong Kong protests. Lai said, 'We in Hong Kong are fighting for the shared values of the US against China. We are fighting their war in the enemy camp.' Pelosi published a photograph of herself, Lai, along with Martin Lee and Janet Pang and supporting words to the Hong Kong protesters. Lai also later met with then US National Security Adviser
John Bolton John Robert Bolton (born November 20, 1948) is an American attorney, diplomat, Republican Party (United States), Republican consultant, and political commentator. He served as the 25th United States ambassador to the United Nations from 2005 to ...
. Bloomberg reporter, Nicholas Wadham tweeted that the meeting was meant to send a signal to Beijing, as it was very "unusual for non governmental visitors to get this kind of access". On 28 February 2020, Lai was arrested for illegal assembly during his attendance in the
2019–2020 Hong Kong protests The 2019–2020 Hong Kong protests (also known by other names) were a series of demonstrations against the Hong Kong government's introduction of a bill to amend the Fugitive Offenders Ordinance in regard to extradition. It was the largest ...
, and for allegedly intimidating an ''Oriental Daily'' reporter after the reporter took photos of him in 2017. His case was scheduled to be heard at Eastern Law Court on 5 May. On 18 April 2020, Lai was among 15 high-profile democracy figures arrested in Hong Kong. According to a police statement, his arrest was based on suspicion of organising, publicizing or taking part in several unauthorized assemblies between August and October 2019. On 3 September 2020, Lai was found not guilty of the ''Oriental Daily'' criminal intimidation charge. In December 2020,
BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broad ...
interviewed him when he was temporarily out on bail and continuing his activism from Apple Daily newsroom. Lai tearfully admitted his fear for his family as he continues his activism. He stated that if he ended up in jail, then he was living his life meaningfully. Lai stated that "If
he government He or HE may refer to: Language * He (letter), the fifth letter of the Semitic abjads * He (pronoun), a pronoun in Modern English * He (kana), one of the Japanese kana (へ in hiragana and ヘ in katakana) * Ge (Cyrillic), a Cyrillic letter cal ...
can induce fear in you, that's the easiest way to control you", adding that inducing fear was the cheapest and most effective way to control people.


National security law and arrests

On 30 June 2020, the Hong Kong national security law was enacted by China's parliament, by-passing the
Legislative Council of Hong Kong The Legislative Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, colloquially known as LegCo, is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Hong Kong. It sits under People's Republic of China, China's "one country, two systems" c ...
. Before the law was enacted, Lai called it "a death knell for Hong Kong" and alleged that it would destroy the territory's rule of law. On 10 August 2020, Lai was arrested at his home for alleged collusion with foreign forces (a crime under the new national security law) and fraud. Other Next Digital staff were also arrested, and police searched the home of both Lai and his son. Later in the morning, approximately 200 Hong Kong police officers raided the offices of ''Apple Daily'' in Tseung Kwan O Industrial Estate, seizing around 25 boxes of materials.
HSBC HSBC Holdings plc ( zh, t_hk=滙豐; initialism from its founding member The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation) is a British universal bank and financial services group headquartered in London, England, with historical and business li ...
took the step to freeze his bank account. After Lai was arrested, the stock price of
Next Digital Next Digital Limited (), previously known as Next Media Limited, was the largest listed Media of Hong Kong, media company in Hong Kong. Founded by Jimmy Lai, it had 2,095 employees as of 30 Sep 2020. The media outlet had a user base of 5.0 mil ...
rose as high as 331 per cent on 11 August. Bail was set at HK$300,000 (approx. US$38,705), with a
surety In finance, a surety , surety bond, or guaranty involves a promise by one party to assume responsibility for the debt obligation of a borrower if that borrower defaults. Usually, a surety bond or surety is a promise by a person or company (a ''sure ...
of HK$200,000 (approx. US$25,803). ''Apple Daily'' said that more than 500,000 copies of its subsequent day's paper were printed, five times the usual number. The front page of Apple Daily showed an image of Lai in handcuffs with the headline: "Apple Daily must fight on." The Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office, an agency of mainland China, welcomed the arrest and called for Lai to be severely punished. The Hong Kong Journalists Association described the raid as "horrendous" and unprecedented in Hong Kong. The Democratic Party accused the government of trying to create a
chilling effect In a legal context, a chilling effect is the inhibition or discouragement of the legitimate exercise of natural and legal rights by the threat of legal sanction. A chilling effect may be caused by legal actions such as the passing of a law, th ...
in the Hong Kong media industry. Former governor
Chris Patten Christopher Francis Patten, Baron Patten of Barnes (; born 12 May 1944), is a British politician who was the Chairman of the Conservative Party from 1990 to 1992, and the 28th and last Governor of Hong Kong from 1992 to 1997. He was made a lif ...
called the events "the most outrageous assault yet" on Hong Kong's press. The head of the
University of Hong Kong The University of Hong Kong (HKU) is a public research university in Pokfulam, Hong Kong. It was founded in 1887 as the Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese by the London Missionary Society and formally established as the University of ...
journalism department called the raid an "outrageous, shameful attack on press freedom". On 2 December 2020, Lai reported to the police station as part of his bail condition for his August arrest related to ongoing national security law violation but was immediately arrested by police for alleged fraud, in that he and two Next Digital executives allegedly violated lease terms for Next Digital office space. Police referred to a further investigation into possible national security law violation against one of the three, apparently referring to Lai. The case was adjourned until April 2021, with Lai being denied bail. On 11 December 2020, Lai became the first high-profile figure to be charged under the new national security law for allegedly conspiring and colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security. The main evidence for those charges, according to the prosecutors, consisted of statements that Lai had made on Twitter. He was accused of using Twitter and other media to request foreign sanctions against Hong Kong and mainland Chinese officials. On 23 December 2020, Lai was granted bail by the High Court with the following conditions: HK$10 million deposit; HK$100,000 deposit by each of his three guarantors; To remain at his home at all times, except when reporting to police or attending court hearings (de facto
house arrest House arrest (also called home confinement, or nowadays electronic monitoring) is a legal measure where a person is required to remain at their residence under supervision, typically as an alternative to imprisonment. The person is confined b ...
); Surrender all travel documents; Banned from attending or hosting media interviews or programmes; Banned from publishing articles on any media, posting messages or comments on social media, including Twitter; Report to police thrice a week. On 31 December 2020, the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal ordered him back to prison after the
Department of Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...
, under prosecutor Anthony Chau Tin-hang, appealed his release on bail. On 9 February 2021, Hong Kong's top court denied his bail; a new bail application by Lai was rejected on 19 February. On 16 February 2021, Lai was arrested while in prison for aiding activist Andy Li in his ill-fated attempt to escape to Taiwan with eleven others in August 2020. On 1 April, he was convicted on a separate case over "unlawful assembly" during the 2019 protests along six other activists and politicians. On 16 April 2021, he was sentenced to 14 months in prison for the unauthorised assembly charge. As the sentencing was carried out, friends and family shouted "stand strong" and other words of support. In May 2021, Lai's assets were all frozen by the Hong Kong government, including all the shares of Next Digital Limited and the property and local bank accounts of three companies owned by him. On 28 May 2021, Lai was sentenced to additional 14 months' imprisonment over his role in an unauthorised assembly in 2019. He must now serve 20 months in prison. On 9 December 2021, (whilst serving his 21 April 2021 sentence) Lai and two others were convicted for their roles in the banned Tiananmen candlelight vigil in Hong Kong. Lai, together with
Chow Hang-tung Tonyee Chow Hang-tung (; born 24 January 1985) is a Hong Kong activist, barrister and politician. During the crackdown by authorities on the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China, which began in June 2021 and ...
, a vice chairperson of the now-defunct vigil organiser the
Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China The Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movements of China ( zh, link=no, t=香港市民支援愛國民主運動聯合會; abbr. ; ) was a pro-democracy organisation that was established on 21 May 1989 in the then British Hon ...
, and activist and former reporter Gwyneth Ho were convicted for either taking part in or inciting others to join the vigil. On 13 December 2021, Lai was sentenced to additional 13 months' imprisonment over his role in the banned vigil. A documentary about the political activism of Lai was released by the Acton Institute in 2022 to significant critical acclaim called ''The Hong Konger.'' In the film, Lai refers to how COVID-19 was used as a pretext for banning protesters from organizing following the initial eruption of activity that came after the extradition law was first proposed in 2019. Lai went on to state that, "The younger generation and the older generation have never been so united." and that, "If we just surrender, we will lose everything." The documentary is also critical of the relationship between corporate investment and the lure to Western companies of Chinese markets and the potential for profit, as Jack Wolfsohn in the ''
National Review ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief is Rich L ...
'' wrote: "The documentary mentioned Wall Street's complicity in human-rights violations committed by China. Wall Street is so focused on making profits, the documentary points out, that it ignores blatant human-rights violations committed by the Chinese government against the Uyghurs, Tibetans, and the Hong Kongers. Yet, Wall Street continues to invest in China. Lai's reaction to this greed was predictable: "Any company that will bow down to China . . . that will hurt the dignity of the American people." At an event screening the film, Mark Clifford, president of the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong, warned of future conflicts, specifically speaking of Taiwan and beyond, "It won't stop in Taiwan. Totalitarianism is a cancer. It's spreading." On 22 August 2022, Lai pled not-guilty to the charges related to "collusion with foreign forces." In late 2022, Paul Lam and the Department of Justice made several appeals to the court system, in an attempt to disallow Lai from using a UK lawyer, Tim Owen. Upon rejection of the last appeal at the High Court on 28November 2022, the government turned to the NPCSC to give an interpretation of the relevant passages of the National Security Law; on 30December, the NPCSC ruled in favour of the government, giving the chief executive the power to bar foreign lawyers from cases related to national security. On 10 December 2022, Lai was sentenced to five years and nine months, and fined 2 million Hong Kong dollars, over the fraud case. On 17 December 2023, the U.S.
State Department The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs o ...
again called for Lai's release shortly before his trial was set to begin. Spokesperson Matthew Miller said: "We urge Beijing and Hong Kong authorities to respect press freedom in Hong Kong. Actions that stifle press freedom and restrict the free flow of information – as well as Beijing and local authorities’ changes to Hong Kong's electoral system that reduce direct voting and preclude independent and pro-democracy party candidates from participating – have undermined Hong Kong's democratic institutions and harmed Hong Kong's reputation as an international business and financial hub." In December 2023, British foreign secretary
David Cameron David William Donald Cameron, Baron Cameron of Chipping Norton (born 9 October 1966) is a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2016. Until 2015, he led the first coalition government in the UK s ...
called for the release of Lai, calling the charges against him politically motivated. On 12 August 2024 the Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal rejected the appeals by Jimmy Lai and six others against conviction for taking part in an unauthorised procession. The appeal determined the scope of "operational proportionality" in relation to human rights in Hong Kong. The defendants were sentenced to imprisonment. Lai's sentence was not suspended. He remained in prison pending other charges related to national security. Lord Neuberger (former President of the
UK Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United Kingdom (initialism: UKSC) is the final court of appeal for all civil cases in the United Kingdom and all criminal cases originating in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, as well as some limited criminal cases ...
) immediately became embroiled in controversy as to his presence as a judge in Hong Kong. In September 2024, a group claiming to be Lai Chee-ying's international legal team stated that they had submitted an urgent complaint to the UN Special Rapporteur on Torture. The complaint alleged that Lai Chee-ying receives only 50 minutes of outdoor exercise daily in prison, lacking necessary physical activity and sunlight exposure. It was also claimed that Lai, who has diabetes, has experienced weight loss since incarceration and is not receiving adequate treatment. Additionally, the team asserted that as a devout Catholic, Lai has been denied the opportunity to receive Holy Communion since the start of his trial. This complaint garnered attention from several overseas media outlets. On September 27, 2024, Robertsons, the Hong Kong law firm representing Lai Chee-ying, issued a statement clarifying that Lai is receiving appropriate treatment in prison. The statement emphasized that although Lai cannot see the sky directly from his cell, he can still access sunlight through the corridor windows outside his cell. Furthermore, he is allowed approximately one hour of exercise daily in a designated area. The statement also noted that Lai is aware he can receive Holy Communion through special arrangements with the Correctional Services Department, which requires a priest to hold a Mass specifically for him. However, due to the inconvenience of this arrangement, no request has yet been made by the priest. In October 2024, president-elect Donald Trump, during an interview with a host who said that Lai was "very important to America's Catholics and the world's Catholics" and asked whether Trump would speak to Xi Jinping about "getting Jimmy Lai out and out of the country," replied "100 per cent yes." Trump said that it would be "so easy" to free Lai from prison. Hong Kong activist Jimmy Lai denied allegations of seeking foreign interference during his national security trial, stating he only advocated for support of Hong Kong's freedoms. If convicted, he faces life imprisonment. During his testimony in November 2024, Lai said he might have asked U.S. officials to sanction Beijing and Hong Kong. He has been asked to explain his meetings with then-U.S. Secretary of State
Mike Pompeo Michael Richard Pompeo (; born December 30, 1963) is an American retired politician who served in the First presidency of Donald Trump#Administration, first administration of Donald Trump as director of the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) fr ...
and vice-president
Mike Pence Michael Richard Pence (born June 7, 1959) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 48th vice president of the United States from 2017 to 2021 under President Donald Trump. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Repub ...
. According to Apple Daily, on a talk show hosted by former lawmaker
Albert Ho Albert Ho Chun-yan ( zh, c=何俊仁; born 1 December 1951) is a solicitor and politician in Hong Kong. He is the former chairman (2014–2019) and vice-chair (2019–2021) of the Hong Kong Alliance in Support of Patriotic Democratic Movement ...
, Lai said he asked the American government to sanction certain Chinese and Hong Kong politicians. Lai has also distanced himself from the international lobbying group "Fight for Freedom, Stand with Hong Kong", saying that he only met with the group's leaders to persuade them not to resort to violence during protests. Lai's attorneys have been targeted by
phishing Phishing is a form of social engineering and a scam where attackers deceive people into revealing sensitive information or installing malware such as viruses, worms, adware, or ransomware. Phishing attacks have become increasingly sophisticate ...
attempts linked to the PRC, rape threats, and
death threats A death threat is a threat, often made Anonymity, anonymously, by one person or a group of people to kill another person or group of people. These threats are often designed to intimidate victims in order to Psychological manipulation, manipulat ...
.


Films


''The Hong Konger: Jimmy Lai's Extraordinary Struggle for Freedom''

''The Hong Konger: Jimmy Lai's Extraordinary Struggle for Freedom'' is a documentary film produced by American think tank Acton Institute. In the film, Lai's various businesses are highlighted, and Lai is shown to prioritise freedom of speech and pro-democracy stances over pure entrepreneurial or profit motives. Jack Wolfsohn of ''
National Review ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief is Rich L ...
'' said that the film "...sends a vital message about the importance of preserving liberty and fighting tyranny."


''The Call of the Entrepreneur''

''The Call of the Entrepreneur'' is a documentary produced by Cold Water Media in which Jimmy Lai is one of the main subjects. The film premiered in
Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is the largest city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, United States. With a population of 198,917 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and estimated at 200,117 in 2024, Grand Rapids is the List of municipalities ...
, US on 17 May 2007.


Personal life

Lai and his first wife, Judy, had three children. She left him for another man. In 1989 he met his current wife Teresa, then a 24-year-old college student; they married two years later, and have children together. Lai is a practising
Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
.


Awards

In June 2021, Lai received the 2021 Gwen Ifill Press Freedom Award from the
Committee to Protect Journalists The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is an American 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in New York City, with correspondents around the world. CPJ promotes press freedom and defends the rights of journalists. The '' American Journalism ...
, and in December that year, together with the staff of shuttered ''Apple Daily'', the Golden Pen of Freedom Award from the
World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) is a non-profit, non-governmental organization made up of 76 national newspaper associations, 12 news agencies, 10 regional press organisations, and many individual newspaper e ...
. Sebastien Lai received the latter award on behalf of his incarcerated father. In April 2022, Lai was amongst five Hong Kong citizens to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for "putting his freedom on the line". In May 2022, Lai was awarded an honorary degree from
The Catholic University of America The Catholic University of America (CUA) is a private Catholic research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is one of two pontifical universities of the Catholic Church in the United States – the only one that is not primarily ...
, for his faith and decision to remain in Hong Kong to fight for democracy. Due to his current imprisonment, the award was accepted by Lai's son, Sebastien. Lai is a recipient of the Washington DC base
Transatlantic Leadership Network
"Freedom of the Media" award in 2024. The award was accepted by his son, Sebastien, at the National Press Club in Washington DC.


See also

*
Apple Daily (Taiwan) ''Apple Daily'' ( zh, t=蘋果日報, p=Píngguǒ Rìbào, poj=Pîn-kó Ji̍t-pò) was a Chinese-language tabloid published in Taiwan, known for its sensational headlines, paparazzi photographs, and animated news videos. The paper was owned b ...
* Apple Daily raids and arrests *
Giordano International Giordano International Limited is an international retailer of men's, women's and children's apparel and accessories founded in Hong Kong in 1981. Giordano now employs over 6,500 staff, with around 1,800 shops operating in more than 30 countrie ...
* '' HKSAR v Lai Chee Ying'' * Jimmy Lai in Chains *
Next Digital Next Digital Limited (), previously known as Next Media Limited, was the largest listed Media of Hong Kong, media company in Hong Kong. Founded by Jimmy Lai, it had 2,095 employees as of 30 Sep 2020. The media outlet had a user base of 5.0 mil ...
*
One country, two systems "One country, two systems" is a constitutional principle of the People's Republic of China (PRC) describing the governance of the special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau. Deng Xiaoping developed the one country, two systems ...
*
Pro-democracy camp (Hong Kong) The pro-democracy camp, also known as the pan-democracy camp, is a political alignment in Hong Kong that supports increased democracy, namely the universal suffrage of the Chief Executive of Hong Kong, Chief Executive and the Legislative Cou ...
*
Special administrative regions of China The special administrative regions (SAR) of the People's Republic of China are one of four types of Province-level divisions of China, province-level divisions of the China, People's Republic of China directly under the control of its S ...
* The Epoch Times *
Falun Gong Falun Gong, also called Falun Dafa, is a new religious movement founded by its leader Li Hongzhi in China in the early 1990s. Falun Gong has its global headquarters in Dragon Springs, a compound in Deerpark, New York, United States, near t ...
*
Guo Wengui Guo Wengui (; born May 10, 1970—self claim or October 5, 1968), also known under the Cantonese language, Cantonese name Ho Wan Kwok (), Miles Guo, and Miles Kwok, is a self-exiled Chinese billionaire businessman, political activism, politica ...
*
Steve Bannon Stephen Kevin Bannon (born November 27, 1953) is an American media executive, political strategist, and former investment banker. He served as the White House's chief strategist for the first seven months of president Donald Trump's first ...


References


External links


New York Times profile (paid)Columbia Journalism Review profileAdmart website
* The Call of the Entrepreneur, a 2007 documentary produced by the Acton Institute
The Apple Daily

The Hong Konger: Jimmy Lai's Extraordinary Struggle for Freedom
a 2022 documentary film produced by the Acton Institute
The Hong Konger Movie
– Film about Jimmy Lai's activism in recent years
A Taste of Chocolate
– Film about Jimmy Lai's early years {{DEFAULTSORT:Lai, Jimmy 1947 births Living people Anti-PRC activists Businesspeople from Guangzhou Hong Kong billionaires Hong Kong democracy activists Chinese anti-communists Hong Kong chief executives Hong Kong textiles industry businesspeople Hong Kong newspaper people Hong Kong writers Writers from Guangzhou Next Digital people Billionaires from Guangdong Newspaper founders Hong Kong Roman Catholics Prisoners and detainees of Hong Kong Hong Kong Christians People convicted under the Hong Kong national security law People with multiple citizenship Chinese conspiracy theorists Hong Kong people convicted of money laundering Chinese fraudsters Political prisoners held by Hong Kong Hong Kong criminals