Jailed Hong Kong tycoon Jimmy Lai on Friday said he had advocated for “peaceful resistance” against China’s erosion of the city’s freedoms and tried to “reduce violence” during huge democracy protests in 2019.
Lai has been giving evidence for three days in his trial for collusion with foreign forces, an offence carrying up to life in prison under the sweeping national security law Beijing imposed on the financial hub in mid-2020.
Lai is one of the most prominent figures to be prosecuted under the law, with Western countries and rights groups demanding his release.
The 76-year-old founder of the now-shuttered tabloid Apple Daily is also accused of “conspiracy to publish seditious publications”.
On Friday, Lai rejected the allegation that he had intended to incite public hatred and violence against the authorities with commentaries published in Apple Daily.
“All I said…was a true reflection of the truth I perceived and the true thought of my heart, without any sense of hostility or intention to be seditious, and this goes for all my other articles,” Lai said.
“I always advocate peaceful resistance,” he said, adding that the purpose of the articles was to “resist the encroachment of China on our freedom”.
The case centres around articles in the newspaper that criticised Beijing’s leadership and supported the protests.
The demonstrations upended the city for months, with disruptions ranging from road blockages to serious clashes with police.
Lai said his articles had suggested solidarity with peaceful protesters, but that had not extended to supporting violence.
“We were trying to get them together with us, so their violence will be reduced,” Lai told the court.
Lai was also questioned about the founding of the English online edition of Apple Daily in May 2020, when the city was bracing for the security law.
Lai told the court a “sense of crisis” drove him to believe that the new edition would help Hong Kong by motivating foreign politicians to “take notice of our situation” and “voice out their concerns” to China.
Apple Daily was forced to close in 2021 after police raids and the arrests of its senior editors.
Lai has been behind bars since December 2020, and concerns have been raised about his medical and jail conditions.
He did not opt to testify in any of his five previous cases, all of which resulted in convictions, including for organising and participating in marches during the 2019 protests.
