Hong Kong Police Raid Anti-China Media Owner... Opposition Criticizes as "Suppression of Press Freedom"

On the 10th, Jimmy Lai, arrested on charges of violating the Hong Kong National Security Law,
is the founder who built the clothing company 'Giordano' with bare hands

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] Concerns have grown that the authorities' crackdown on the press has intensified after Hong Kong police raided Jimmy Lai, the owner of the prominent anti-China media outlet Apple Daily, and arrested him on charges of violating the "Hong Kong National Security Law" (Hong Kong Security Law).

On the 10th (local time), Hong Kong's South China Morning Post (SCMP) and others reported, citing sources, that the Hong Kong police's National Security Department, which is dedicated to enforcing the Hong Kong Security Law, arrested Jimmy Lai at his residence in the Ho Man Tin area of Hong Kong on charges of violating the Hong Kong Security Law.

The Hong Kong Security Law prohibits and punishes collusion with foreign forces, acts of secession, subversion of state power, terrorism, and establishes institutions in Hong Kong to enforce these provisions. Chinese state media and pro-Beijing factions in Hong Kong have strongly criticized Jimmy Lai, labeling him as a figure orchestrating the protests against the "Fugitive Offenders Ordinance (Extradition Law)" from behind the scenes.

On the same morning, over 200 Hong Kong police officers also raided the Apple Daily headquarters in the Cheung Kwan O area. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Cheung Kim-hung and Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Chow Tat-kwan were arrested during the search. CEO Cheung was arrested on charges of endangering national security by colluding with foreign forces, and CFO Chow was arrested on charges of conspiracy to commit fraud. Two of Jimmy Lai's sons were also arrested on similar charges. At least seven people have been arrested, and sources indicated that additional arrests may follow. It was also reported that Mark Simon, a close associate of Jimmy Lai who is overseas, has been placed on a wanted list.

The police deny any direct connection to the protests against the Extradition Law. A police official explained that the investigation is related to complaints from pro-Beijing groups such as the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions, alleging that Jimmy Lai and others committed irregularities in the operation of Apple Daily's parent company, Next Digital.

The police stated that the editorial department was excluded from the Apple Daily raid, but Hong Kong's opposition parties strongly criticized the move as a suppression of press freedom. The Democratic Party, Hong Kong's largest opposition party, criticized, "The arrest of Jimmy Lai and the raid on Apple Daily will instill fear throughout the media industry, and as a result, the freedom of the press guaranteed by the Basic Law (Hong Kong's de facto constitution) faces a serious crisis." Another opposition party, the Civic Party, condemned the police, saying, "The police's intense raid is an attempt to use the Hong Kong Security Law as a pretext to foster a 'white terror' and suppress press freedom, preventing Hong Kong citizens from voicing opposition."

There is also analysis that the arrest of Jimmy Lai and others on this day is a countermeasure against the United States, which has been pressuring China over Hong Kong issues. On the 7th, the U.S. Treasury Department simultaneously imposed sanctions on 11 senior officials from mainland China and Hong Kong, including Hong Kong Chief Executive Carrie Lam, prompting strong backlash from the Chinese central government and the Hong Kong government, calling it "barbaric interference in internal affairs."

Jimmy Lai's arrest on this day is the third case of arrest under the Hong Kong Security Law since it came into effect on June 30. During the July 1 Hong Kong sovereignty handover anniversary protests, over 360 protesters were arrested, of whom 10 were charged with violating the Hong Kong Security Law. At that time, a 23-year-old man who attacked police at the protest was the first to be prosecuted under the Hong Kong Security Law. This man was arrested after charging at riot police with a "Liberate Hong Kong, Revolution of Our Times" flag attached to his motorcycle and was later charged with inciting secession and terrorism.

Jimmy Lai was born into a poor family in Guangdong Province, China, and acquired a bankrupt garment factory to found the global clothing brand Giordano. Shocked by the Chinese government's bloody crackdown on the Tiananmen Square democracy protests in 1989, he launched Next Magazine in 1990 and Apple Daily in 1995, fully entering the media business. Apple Daily actively reported on corruption and power struggles within the Chinese leadership, emerging as Hong Kong's leading anti-China media outlet.

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