Hong Kong ex-media mogul Jimmy Lai will not appeal national security
conviction, legal team says
[March 06, 2026]
By KANIS LEUNG
HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong pro-democracy ex-publisher Jimmy Lai will not
appeal the national security conviction for which he was sentenced to 20
years in prison last month, his legal team said Friday.
Lai, an outspoken critic of China’s ruling Communist Party who founded
the now-defunct Apple Daily, was found guilty in December of conspiracy
to collude with foreign forces and conspiring with others to publish
seditious articles.
His Hong Kong legal team told The Associated Press via a text message
about the decision, which ends a yearslong legal battle. The lawyers
would not comment on the reason for not appealing.
“We can confirm we have clear and definitive instructions not to lodge
an appeal against conviction or sentence,” they said.
Observers say his conviction reflected the decline of press and other
freedoms that has changed Hong Kong, a former British colony that
returned to China’s control in 1997. The government insists the case has
nothing to do with a free press, saying the defendants used news
reporting as a pretext for years to commit acts that harmed China and
Hong Kong.
Lai was one of the first prominent figures to be arrested under the
security law in 2020. Within a year, some of Apple Daily’s senior
journalists also were arrested, and the newspaper, known for its
critical coverage of both the Beijing and Hong Kong governments, shut
down in June 2021.
Lai is 78, and his lengthy sentence raised concerns that he could spend
the rest of his life in prison.
After the sentencing, the children of Lai said a possible visit by U.S.
President Donald Trump to Beijing could be crucial in securing the
release of their father, a British citizen. After Lai’s verdict, Trump,
who had raised Lai’s case with China, said he felt “so badly.”
The White House has confirmed that Trump will travel to China on March
31 through April 2 to meet Chinese leader Xi Jinping, although there is
no official confirmation from Beijing so far.
U.K. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has said Lai was sentenced for
exercising his right to freedom of expression and called on the Hong
Kong authorities to release him on humanitarian grounds.
Chinese and Hong Kong authorities have defended Lai’s sentencing, saying
it reflected the spirit of the rule of law.
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Jimmy Lai walks through the Stanley prison, in Hong Kong, July 28,
2023. (AP Photo/Louise Delmotte, File)
Wilson Chan, co-founder of the Pagoda Institute, a think tank
focusing on public policy and the global political economy, said
Beijing has previously granted medical parole to mainland prisoners
but Hong Kong has no such provision, so one potential path for Lai's
release could be a pardon from the city leader under a diplomatic
solution.
Chan suggested not appealing may be a basic requirement to satisfy
Beijing for any such solution, but it doesn’t guarantee anything. He
predicted the chance of a diplomatic solution from a Trump-Xi
meeting would be slim, even though the two leaders are likely to
discuss Lai.
Chan said Beijing would not need to use Lai’s case as leverage with
the U.S. and it would have other considerations, including how to
maintain the city’s judicial independence under its “one country,
two systems” governing principle. Resolving Lai's case also would
not be Trump's priority, he said.
Before the Iran war erupted, Washington and Beijing already had
tensions on multiple issues, from trade and the economy to Taiwan.
“Speaking from Washington’s perspective, what can it get through a
trade when Mr. Lai is released?” Chan said.
Last week, Lai won an appeal to quash his convictions and sentence
in a separate fraud case, a rare victory in his legal battles.
That ruling could reduce his total prison time. But the government
earlier said the Department of Justice would study the judgment
thoroughly and consider whether to appeal.
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