Jimmy Lai verdict to come ‘in good time’ – judge
A Hong Kong court has said it will deliver its verdict in newspaper owner’s Jimmy Lai's national-security trial in due course.
The court heard on Thursday, after a 156-day trial that began in December 2023.
Lai to two charges of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces, and a charge of conspiracy to publish seditious material.
Lai is the founder of pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper, which was shut down by authorities.
One of the three judges Esther Toh said that the verdict would be announced "in good time".
Possible life imprisonment
Lai faces possible life imprisonment and is a high-profile example of China's crackdown on democratic rights and freedoms in Hong Kong, under a sweeping national-security law that was imposed after mass pro-democracy protests in 2019.
He has been imprisoned for over 1,700 days and has serious health conditions, including diabetes.
“I’ve lost count of the number of times the Chinese / Hong Kong authorities or CCP State media have called me a ‘so-called human-rights lawyer’ leading a ‘so-called legal team’,” said one of Lai’s lawyers, Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC on X (26 August).
Gallagher (small picture) was commenting after publication of an academic report, , by Linette Lim and Alexander Dukalsis, which examines how China’s state-run media increasingly use inverted commas and the words ‘so-called’ when talking about political opponents.