Pro-democracy media tycoon and British citizen Jimmy Lai, 78, has been jailed for 20 years over national security offences, in a decision that has provoked uproar from the UK, Europe and the US.
A Hong Kong court called his offences “grave” and “premeditated” as it handed down the toughest sentence yet under the city’s controversial national security law on Monday.
Lai, one of Hong Kong’s most prominent Beijing critics, was seen as a hero by the pro-democracy movement and had often used his newspaper, Apple Daily, as a tool of protest. He always denied the charges against him.
Some supporters had been waiting outside the court since Friday evening, and were joined ahead of the sentencing by a heavy police presence and strict cordons.