Arrest of Anti-China Media Founder... Hong Kong Crisis Escalates to Worst Level

Jimmy Lai Charged with National Security Law Violation
Five Eyes' First Joint Anti-China Statement

[Asia Economy Beijing=Special Correspondent Cho Young-shin] Jimmy Lai, the founder of the Hong Kong-based prominent anti-China media outlet Apple Daily, has been arrested on charges of violating the Hong Kong National Security Law. The conflict between China and the West surrounding Hong Kong is intensifying, with the United States and four other English-speaking countries issuing a joint statement condemning China.

According to Bloomberg and other sources on the 10th, the Hong Kong police's dedicated security law unit, the "National Security Department," arrested Jimmy Lai at his residence in the Ho Man Tin area of Hong Kong on charges of violating the Hong Kong National Security Law. The law prohibits and punishes collusion with foreign forces, acts of secession, subversion of state power, terrorism, and establishes institutions to enforce these within Hong Kong. Jimmy Lai is accused of colluding with foreign forces. If found guilty, he faces a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Jimmy Lai's arrest was already anticipated. He had been indicted along with Joshua Wong shortly after the Hong Kong National Security Law was enacted in June.

Jimmy Lai is a self-made figure who founded the clothing brand Giordano and grew it into one of Asia's leading apparel companies. However, after the 1989 Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests, he launched Next Magazine and Apple Daily, actively entering the media business and clearly taking an anti-China stance. He also strongly criticized police violence and the Chinese central government's hardline response during last year's protests against the "Fugitive Offenders Ordinance" (extradition bill).

With the news of Jimmy Lai's arrest, tensions surrounding Hong Kong are expected to escalate once again. Pressure from the Western camp, including the United States, remains high. On the 9th (local time), foreign ministers of the English-speaking intelligence alliance "Five Eyes" issued a joint statement condemning the Hong Kong government's postponement of elections and disqualification of pro-democracy candidates. This is the first time the five countries have issued a joint anti-China statement.

The ministers expressed "serious concerns about China's enactment of the Hong Kong National Security Law, which undermines the fundamental rights and freedoms of Hong Kong residents," and warned that "China promised autonomy and freedom to Hong Kong residents under the 'one country, two systems' principle and must keep that promise."

Ignoring these concerns, the Chinese government held the "21st Meeting of the 13th National People's Congress Standing Committee" on the 8th, discussing follow-up measures related to the postponement of the Hong Kong Legislative Council (parliament) elections, signaling significant repercussions.

The aftermath is also affecting Hong Kong's financial market.

The Hong Kong South China Morning Post (SCMP) reported that since the United States announced financial sanctions against 11 senior officials from China and Hong Kong, including Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam, Hong Kong's financial sector has been caught in a dilemma.

Hong Kong authorities stated that the U.S. sanctions do not correspond to international sanctions passed by the United Nations and therefore have no legal effect in Hong Kong, announcing that financial institutions do not need to comply with the sanctions. This creates a catch-22 situation where following Hong Kong means facing U.S. financial sanctions, and following the U.S. means facing Hong Kong sanctions.

In particular, the controversy surrounding Hong Kong is expected to intensify further in connection with U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar's visit to Taiwan the day before. He is the highest-ranking U.S. official to visit Taiwan since the U.S. severed diplomatic ties with Taiwan in 1979, provoking strong opposition from China.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.