Canada

Canada’s foreign minister has condemned the “politically motivated” conviction of Hong Kong pro-democracy activist and media mogul Jimmy Lai, and called for his immediate release from prison.

Lai, an outspoken critic of Beijing, was found guilty Monday of violating Hong Kong’s stringent, China-imposed national security law. The 78-year-old has already spent five years in custody while awaiting the landmark trial, and now faces the possibility of spending the rest of his life behind bars.

“Canada condemns the politically motivated prosecution of Jimmy Lai under the National Security Law in Hong Kong and calls for his immediate release,” Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said in a statement provided by her office to Global News.

“We continue to express our concerns about deteriorating rights, freedoms and autonomy which are enshrined in Hong Kong’s Basic Law.”

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Three government-vetted judges found Lai, the founder of the now-defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, guilty of conspiring to collude with foreign forces to endanger national security and conspiracy to publish seditious articles. He pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Lai was arrested in August 2020 under a Beijing-imposed national security law that was implemented following massive anti-government protests in 2019. He was previously convicted of several lesser offences related to fraud allegations and his actions during that year of protest.

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