Hong Kong’s activist publisher to stand trial this week under Beijing’s crackdown on dissidents

By KANIS LEUNG
Associated Press

HONG KONG (AP) — The trial of Hong Kong’s most famous activist publisher who was arrested under China’s crackdown on dissidents will start this week after being delayed for over a year. Jimmy Lai broke into the city’s once freewheeling media world about three decades ago, armed with the belief that delivering information is equal to protecting freedom. Now, the 76-year-old’s own freedom is at stake as he faces a possible life sentence if convicted under a national security law imposed by Beijing following the 2019 pro-democracy protests. His case is tied to the now-defunct pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily he founded. It is seen by many as a trial for press freedom and a test for the city’s judicial independence.