Former Apple Daily Journalists Fear Heavy Sentence After Jimmy Lai Conviction
Former colleagues of jailed Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai have reacted with dismay to his national security conviction, warning that Lai and other former Apple Daily staff could face lengthy prison sentences while saying he remains a source of inspiration.
Lai was found guilty of conspiring to collude with foreign forces and of sedition, more than four years after police raided the newsroom of Apple Daily, the outspoken pro-democracy newspaper he founded. The crackdown led to the paper’s closure and marked a turning point for Hong Kong’s media landscape.
«Although the verdict was expected, what worries us most is the sentence,» said Edward Li, Apple Daily’s former chief breaking-news editor, now based in Taiwan. «Will it be 10 or 15 years, as predicted?»
Li and fellow former reporter Shirley Leung now run Pulse HK, a Hong Kong-focused outlet operating from Taipei. Both said the closure of Apple Daily had a chilling effect on journalism, forcing many reporters to leave the industry or move overseas.
Six former senior Apple Daily staffers have pleaded guilty to charges related to seeking foreign sanctions and will be sentenced alongside Lai following mitigation hearings in January.
Critics say Hong Kong’s national security law remains vague and discourages independent reporting, while authorities insist press freedom is protected. Despite financial pressures and shrinking overseas media support, former Apple Daily journalists say they are determined to continue reporting on Hong Kong from abroad.
Kursiv Uzbekistan also reports that On December 15, Uzbekistan’s ambassador to the Vatican, Farrukh Tursunov, presented his credentials to Pope Leo XIV.
