Jimmy Lai pushed for US bill granting refugee status to Hongkongers, called for sanctions, key witness tells court
- Prosecution witness Wayland Chan says Jimmy Lai steered passage of Hong Kong Safe Harbour Act to allow residents at risk of persecution to seek asylum in US
- Lai also hosted live interviews with political pundits to trigger international sanctions after Beijing-imposed 2020 national security law
Media tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying pushed for the passage of a US bill to grant refugee status to Hongkongers and set up live interviews with overseas political pundits in a bid to trigger international sanctions, even after the national security law took effect four years ago, a court has heard.
Prosecution witness Wayland Chan Tsz-wah, a paralegal, told West Kowloon Court on Monday that Lai had steered the passage of the Hong Kong Safe Harbour Act, a bipartisan bill that would allow Hongkongers at risk of persecution under the Beijing-imposed 2020 national security law to seek political asylum in the United States.
Chan also argued the tycoon had “continued to speak out” by hosting online series “Live Chat with Jimmy Lai”, which he used to “set an example” to those who were still striving for sanctions and other hostile acts, despite the risks involved after the national security law came into force.
The defendant turned accomplice witness admitted he had no knowledge or recollection of the content of the programmes, apart from the fact that he watched one episode on an unknown date.
He said Lai had called for sanctions in at least one article published after the national security law came into force in June 2020, but added his belief was based on a social media post sent to him which he had never read in detail.
Chan was responding to inquiries raised by three judges hearing the high-profile trial after the prosecution and defence filed their questions on the 70th day of proceedings.
He earlier told the court he connected Lai to activists of the “Fight for Freedom. Stand with Hong Kong.” (SWHK) lobbying group, in which the tycoon allegedly pulled the strings from behind the scenes to trigger China’s “implosion” – the nation’s political and economic collapse – through international actions.
The 76-year-old Apple Daily founder has pleaded not guilty to two conspiracy charges of collusion with foreign forces and a third of conspiracy to print and distribute seditious publications.
Madam Justice Susana D’Almada Remedios on Monday highlighted a line in Chan’s earlier evidence where he said he would continue to call for sanctions if he saw people such as of Lai “still working hard for the sake of Hong Kong”.
“Did you know whether Lai Chee-ying was still working hard for the sake of Hong Kong after the [national security law]?” the judge asked.
Chan agreed and said Lai’s right-hand man Mark Simon, who previously worked for US naval intelligence, had confirmed to him that the mogul’s lobbying efforts continued.
Fellow justice Esther Toh Lye-ping explored the possibility of Lai using his now-closed Apple Daily tabloid to further push his anti-China conspiracy, but the witness said he had never read the newspaper’s English digital edition nor any of Lai’s commentaries.
Chan turned prosecution witness after he pleaded guilty to a charge of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces in August 2021. He has been detained since his prosecution in February that year.
The paralegal earlier admitted in cross-examination that he had tried to derail the investigation by lying about his involvement in the case when he was first interviewed by police in October 2020.
He requested that a second statement be taken on April 28 the next year so that he could “give a truthful account of the facts”, including his relationship with Lai and Simon.
Chan, when questioned about his change of heart, said: “I don’t want to be condemned by my conscience any more.”
Royston Chow Tat-kuen, a former executive of Apple Daily’s parent company Next Digital, is expected to testify for the prosecution when the trial continues on Tuesday.
