Jimmy Lai, center, is leaving the Supreme Court after being bailed in Hong Kong on December 23.
Photographer: Roy Liu / Bloomberg
Photographer: Roy Liu / Bloomberg
The decision of the Hong Kong Supreme Court to release media mogul Jimmy Lai on bail is “unbelievable,” said one comment in the Chinese Communist Party spokeswoman, which warned that there are legal grounds for transferring the case to the mainland.
The People’s Daily named the 73-year-old founder of Next Digital Ltd. ‘infamous and extremely dangerous’. Prosecutors this month indicted Lai under a sweeping national security law imposed by Beijing in June, saying he was colluding with foreigners by calling for sanctions against China.
A judge previously denied bail while giving the prosecution more time to investigate media interviews and about 1,000 tweets for more evidence. The Hong Kong Supreme Court later awarded Lai a bail of HK $ 10 million ($ 1.3 million) on December 23 on the condition that he stay in his home and do not interview or post on social media. He also had to hand in his travel documents.
It’s not hard for Lai to forfeit bail and go into hiding, the People’s Daily said, citing his wealth and “motives” of foreign troops.
The Hong Kong courts are the final check on Beijing’s growing power
Lai’s arrest and a dramatic police raid on the editorial of his pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper in August sparked protests from foreign governments, including the UK, who said the new security law was being used to protect press freedoms in the former UK. colony. .
There are full legal grounds for China to invoke Article 55 of the National Security Act, the paper said. Article 55 states that China “can exercise jurisdiction over a case of a crime endangering national security” if the case is complex due to the involvement of a foreign country or external elements, or if a serious situation arises in which the government of Hong Kong cannot effectively enforce the law.
If Lai’s case cannot be handled in accordance with the law, it will cause a massive shock to the rule of law in Hong Kong and put national security in an extremely dangerous situation, the comment said.
The threat voiced in the editorial will heighten growing concern over China’s hold on Hong Kong. As the first security law lawsuits begin, Hong Kong’s independent judiciary is emerging as the final check on Beijing’s power. So far, the judges of Hong Kong have proven their independence, but in a clear break with the past, Beijing now weighs up the decisions of Hong Kong courts, praises satisfactory rulings and uses friendly media to criticize others.
– With help from John Liu and Jessica Sui