The son of imprisoned Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai has urgently requested a meeting with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, expressing his desperation as his father’s defense nears its conclusion in a high-profile trial. Sebastien Lai emphasized the need for renewed diplomatic efforts to secure the release of the 77-year-old pro-democracy advocate, who is a British citizen and has been incarcerated in Hong Kong since December 2020.
Lai’s legal team has raised concerns about his detention conditions and his deteriorating health. “I don’t want my father to die in jail,” Sebastien Lai told AFP in London. “I need to meet with the prime minister imminently.” This week, Jimmy Lai completed over 50 days of testimony as he faces charges of foreign collusion under Hong Kong’s national security law, enacted by China to suppress dissent following the 2019 pro-democracy protests.
As the founder of the now-defunct Chinese-language tabloid Apple Daily, which supported the protests, Lai is among the most notable individuals prosecuted under this law. The collusion charge carries a potential life sentence, and he also faces accusations related to “seditious publications.”
“It is desperate now,” Sebastien Lai stated during a briefing in London organized by the Reporters Without Borders (RSF) rights group. “I really don’t know how long my father has.” UN human rights experts and several Western governments, including the UK, have called for Lai’s release. A UK government spokesperson affirmed that Jimmy Lai’s case is a priority, urging Hong Kong authorities to cease politically motivated prosecutions and release him immediately.
Last year, Starmer discussed Lai’s situation with Chinese President Xi Jinping, emphasizing that securing his freedom is a government priority. However, Lai’s legal team insists that more urgency is required. Lawyer Caoilfhionn Gallagher warned that delays in the proceedings, combined with Lai’s age, health, and detention conditions, could result in “a British national dying in prison for being a journalist and for standing up for democratic values.”
RSF’s UK director, Fiona O’Brien, remarked that Lai’s situation has reached a “pivotal moment,” highlighting that it represents the values of press freedom for which he has dedicated his life. In contrast, Sun Qingye, deputy chief of Beijing’s national security apparatus in Hong Kong, dismissed calls for Lai’s release, stating that the matter must be resolved according to the law and questioning the rationale behind granting a pardon.
In Hong Kong, Lai’s lawyers concluded their defense on Friday.
