Canada – Newswire, September 23, 2024
Jimmy Lai, a journalist, writer, media publisher, and pro-democracy activist, has won PEN Canada’s One Humanity Award. Lai, who has been in solitary confinement since December 2020, is currently facing a potential life sentence for his journalism in Hong Kong.
The 76-year old writer, who is a UK citizen, has been targeted for his journalism and pro-democracy activism. He was the owner of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper, once regarded as Hong Kong’s most prolific pro-democracy news outlet.
Before Apple Daily was shut down by authorities in 2021, Lai wrote a letter to his staff from prison, telling them that “freedom of speech is a dangerous job” and that “it is time for us to stand tall with our heads held high”. He received a twelve-month sentence just days later.
Since Lai’s initial arrest in August 2020, he has faced multiple unjust convictions, including a 13-month sentence for unauthorized assembly stemming from his brief appearance at a vigil commemorating the Tiananmen Square massacre. More recently, he was sentenced to five years and nine months imprisonment for violating the terms of a commercial lease for the headquarters of Apple Daily’s parent company.
PEN believes that Lai’s ongoing detention is emblematic of the devastating impact the 2020 National Security Law (NSL) has had on freedom of expression across Hong Kong. His case is illustrative of the government’s willingness to use the legal system to silence dissent.
