Hong Kong media mogul Jimmy Lai takes rival newspaper to court over ‘inflammatory’ article
- Ta Kung Pao allegedly suggested in a June 25 article Apple Daily founder Lai would jump bail in court cases, including those tied to last year’s protests
- Lai on Thursday asked the High Court to bar the paper from publishing similar libellous content, and order it to publish an apology and pay damages
Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying has taken a rival newspaper to court over an “inflammatory” article that claimed he was prepared to flee the city and abscond from criminal proceedings.
In a writ filed on Thursday, Lai asked the High Court to bar the pro-Beijing paper and its “registered editor”, Jia Xiping, from publishing similar libellous content again, and order them to publish an apology and pay damages.
The Post understood that Ta Kung Pao’s editor-in-chief was Yu Shijun at the time the disputed article was published. Jia, Yu’s predecessor, stepped down in 2017.
The writ, drafted by Robertsons, noted Ta Kung Pao had run a story, titled “Leaders who create chaos in Hong Kong plotting escape, escape route exposed, charging one million dollars”.
The article allegedly depicted Lai as a “potential suspect” whose “intention to abscond to evade criminal responsibility is well apparent”.