Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai to testify in his own defense

Hong Kong publisher Jimmy Lai will testify in his defense in a national security trial brought under a Beijing-imposed law that has crushed public dissent.

A defense lawyer said Thursday that prominent publisher Jimmy Lai will testify in his defense in the landmark national security trial brought under a Beijing-imposed law that has all but wiped out public dissent.

Lai, the 76-year-old founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper, was arrested in 2020 during a crackdown on the mass pro-democracy protests that rocked Hong Kong in 2019. He was charged with colluding with foreign forces to endanger national security and conspiring with others to put out seditious publications. If convicted, he faces up to life in prison.

On Wednesday, Lai’s lawyer Robert Pang argued his client had no case to answer because the prosecutors’ evidence was insufficient. Pang said the prosecution had failed to prove Lai’s intent after the introduction of the 2020 law and stressed the importance of freedom of speech.

But judges Esther Toh, Susana D’Almada Remedios and Alex Lee, who were approved by the government to oversee the case, ruled against him on Thursday.

"Having considered all the submission, we ruled that the first defendant has a case to answer on all charges," Toh said, without elaborating.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/hong-kong-media-tycoon-jimmy-lai-testify-defense-rcna163582

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