Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai will not challenge his conviction or 20-year prison sentence under the city’s national security law, bringing an end to a lengthy legal battle that has drawn widespread international attention.
A member of Lai’s legal team confirmed that the 78-year-old businessman had given clear instructions not to file an appeal against either the conviction or the sentence handed down earlier this year. The lawyer did not provide further details about the decision.
Lai, the founder of the now-closed pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, was convicted in December on two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and one count related to publishing seditious material. He was formally sentenced in February after a trial that lasted nearly five years from the start of proceedings.
The case has become one of the most prominent prosecutions under Hong Kong’s national security law and has sparked criticism from several Western governments and international rights groups.
Family members have warned that Lai’s health has deteriorated during his time in custody. His children say he suffers from diabetes and heart-related complications, as well as high blood pressure, after spending more than five years in solitary confinement.
Meanwhile, Fung Wai-kong, the former editor-in-chief of Apple Daily’s English edition, has filed an appeal against his own 10-year prison sentence stemming from the same national security case.
The case has also surfaced in diplomatic discussions. Donald Trump recently raised Lai’s situation with Chinese leader Xi Jinping and is expected to revisit the issue during a planned visit to Beijing later this month.
Authorities in Hong Kong and Beijing maintain that the legal proceedings were conducted fairly and argue that the national security law has restored stability to the city following large-scale pro-democracy protests in 2019.
In a separate development last month, Hong Kong’s Court of Appeal overturned a fraud conviction against Lai and quashed a 69-month sentence related to that case, marking a rare legal victory for the jailed publisher.