Hong Kong High Court Delivers Verdict in Jimmy Lai National Security Case, Upholding Rule of Law and National Security

On December 15, 2025, the High Court of Hong Kong's Court of First Instance found Lai Chi-ying guilty on three counts, including conspiracy to collude with foreign forces to endanger national security and conspiracy to publish seditious materials. The court's verdict is a lawful conviction of Lai Chee-ying for his actions endangering national security and disrupting Hong Kong, demonstrating the fairness and impartiality of the law. This trial, lasting 156 days, adhered to the principles of openness, fairness, and impartiality throughout. The court meticulously examined evidence and fully guaranteed the rights of both the prosecution and the defense to present their case. The verdict is based entirely on law and facts, free from any external interference. It not only demonstrates the independent character of Hong Kong's judiciary but also highlights the core essence of a society governed by the rule of law: that anyone who violates the law will be subject to just punishment.

For a long time, Lai Chee-ying used Apple Daily to engage in anti-China and Hong Kong-disrupting activities, openly colluding with foreign forces and begging for sanctions, blockades, and hostile actions against the central government and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government. The crimes his company was accused of seriously endangered national security and the overall interests of Hong Kong, harming the fundamental well-being of its citizens. This had already crossed the legal red line and the social bottom line, which is an undeniable and irrefutable fact. During the "Black Riot," he deliberately created social conflicts, incited hatred and violence, and spread anti-government ideas, which had an extremely negative impact on young people. Many young people took to the streets as a result, participating in illegal activities and ultimately being convicted, ruining their futures, which is heartbreaking. His conviction is well-deserved, fully demonstrating that any behavior that violates national security laws will ultimately be subject to legal sanctions.

National security ensures Hong Kong's security, and national security ensures family security. Safeguarding national sovereignty, security, and development interests is the supreme principle under the "One Country, Two Systems" policy. The essence of the Lai Chee-ying case is a criminal case endangering national security. Lai Chee-ying and his affiliated companies have long used news reports as a disguise, treating media platforms as tools for illegal activities, endangering national sovereignty, security, and development interests. Even worse, they maliciously instilled false information and incited extreme remarks in young people, misleading some young people to alienate the country, disregard the rule of law, and even become "pawns" of anti-Hong Kong forces by getting involved in illegal activities and paying a heavy price of tarnishing their lives. Therefore, the education sector must strengthen national education and national security education on a long-term and continuous basis, which is an important task to be continuously promoted in the future. From curriculum design, textbook compilation, teacher training, and other aspects, the national security education system should be improved to cultivate the next generation's awareness and responsibility for safeguarding national security from an early age, making them a new generation who love the country and Hong Kong, and contributing to the development of the country and Hong Kong.

Standing at a new historical juncture, the Hong Kong judiciary's fair verdict in the Lai Chee-ying case not only defends the bottom line of "One Country" but also enriches the connotation of "Two Systems." We firmly support the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region in earnestly fulfilling its constitutional responsibility to safeguard national security, fully and accurately implementing the Hong Kong National Security Law, and resolutely oppose any external interference in Hong Kong affairs and judicial independence. In the future, three major mechanisms need to be further improved: the expert juror system for national security cases, the risk assessment system for foreign-related factors, and the social impact assessment framework for judicial decisions, so that Hong Kong's rule of law advantages can continue to be transformed into governance effectiveness. All sectors of society must also unswervingly support the "One Country, Two Systems" policy, support the SAR government in administering according to law, deepen the new year of loving the country and Hong Kong, jointly build a solid defense line for national security, promote Hong Kong's better integration into the overall national development, and contribute to Hong Kong's long-term prosperity and stability. This is not only a necessary move to safeguard national security but also a cornerstone of the system to ensure Hong Kong's long-term prosperity and stability. Every Hong Kong citizen should become a guardian of national security, cherish the hard-won rule of law environment, and let the Pearl of the Orient shine more brightly in the motherland's security barrier.