New York, August 13, 2025—As closing arguments are set to begin on August 14 in the national security trial of Jimmy Lai, founder of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, the Committee to Protect Journalists calls on Hong Kong authorities to drop all charges against the 77-year-old publisher and release him immediately and unconditionally.
Lai, whose health has worsened after spending nearly five years in solitary confinement in a maximum-security prison, is on trial under charges of sedition and conspiracy to collude with foreign forces. He faces life imprisonment if found guilty.
“The world is watching how Hong Kong treats its journalists,” said CPJ Regional Director Beh Lih Yi. “The prolonged detention of Jimmy Lai not only destroys Hong Kong’s historic reputation as a free and open society, but also as a trusted hub for business. The risk of him dying in prison increases as each day passes.”
Lai’s trial was originally expected to last 30 days when it started in December 2023, after multiple delays. But it will have taken nearly 150 days when it resumes on Thursday. The publisher took the stand in December 2024, with the prosecution questioning Lai over Apple Daily’s editorial policy, particularly 33 opinion columns he wrote.
Lai, a British citizen, has been behind bars since his arrest in December 2020. He has been convicted of various charges, including fraud and participation in a protest. The U.N. Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found that Lai is unlawfully and arbitrarily detained.
CPJ was among more than 30 organizations that wrote to British Prime Minister Keir Starmer in June, urging him to swiftly meet with Lai’s son, Sebastien — a request that the family has been making for over two years and remains unfulfilled to this day.
Lai won CPJ’s Gwen Ifill Press Freedom Award in 2021 and CPJ continues to advocate for his freedom.
This content originally appeared on Committee to Protect Journalists and was authored by CPJ Staff.