Hong Kong tycoon Jimmy Lai set up English language Apple Daily in bid to win US support, stave off possible Beijing crackdown, court hears
- Prosecution starts fifth day of trial with spotlight on Lai’s editorial leadership at tabloid and alleged bid to win support from then US president Donald Trump
- Court told Lai highlighted financial and political clout gained if top US politicians subscribed to English language digital version
An English language edition of the now-closed Apple Daily tabloid was created at founder Jimmy Lai Chee-ying’s request in a bid to drum up international support and head off a potential crackdown on the newspaper by mainland Chinese authorities, a Hong Kong court heard on Wednesday.
Prosecutors pressed on with their opening arguments at West Kowloon Court on the fifth day of the high-profile national security trial, and switched their attention to Lai’s editorial leadership at the newspaper and allegations that he instigated further unrest during the 2019 anti-government protests.
Anthony Chau Tin-hang, the deputy director of public prosecutions, highlighted the involvement of United States politicians in the setting up of Apple Daily’s English digital platform, as well as Lai’s alleged attempt to engage former US president Donald Trump in a plot to impose international sanctions on Beijing.
Chau told the court the collusion scheme had continued after the national security law came into force on June 30, 2020, until the newspaper’s closure on June 24 the following year in the wake of a police crackdown.
The 76-year-old businessman has pleaded not guilty to two conspiracy charges of foreign collusion under the Beijing-decreed security law, and a third conspiracy offence based on colonial-era sedition legislation.
Lai, seated in the dock with three prison officers, nodded and smiled to his wife, Teresa Li Wan-kam, and his children, who were in the public gallery.