Hong Kong pro-democracy activist and media baron Jimmy Lai on Monday was found guilty of sedition and collusion with foreign countries by a Hong Kong court.
The 78-year-old was charged under Hong Kong’s controversial national security law, enacted by Beijing in 2020 after pro-democracy protests swept the region in 2019.
Lai, one of the Chinese Communist Party’s most vocal critics, had pleaded not guilty to two charges of colluding with foreign forces under the national security law, as well as a charge of conspiracy to publish seditious materials.
He has been under arrest since 2020, with his trial starting in December 2023.
The businessman, who founded Asian clothing brand Giordano, newspaper Apple Daily and digital media company Next Digital, was brought up by U.S. President Donald Trump during his meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea back in October.
