Hong Kong tycoon Jimmy Lai knew US conditions for continued support of protests, national security trial told

Key prosecution witness says Jimmy Lai told him US wanted no police or civilian fatalities and that violence should stop at some point
West Kowloon Court told Lai initially intended to convince ‘valiant’ demonstrators to pull back from their aggressive tactics using connections of witness

Hong Kong courts

Brian Wong

Published: 10:47pm, 16 Apr 2024

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Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying sought to assume control over radical protesters and de-escalate the 2019 anti-government unrest to meet US conditions for continued support, a key prosecution witness told the mogul’s national security trial on Tuesday.

Paralegal Wayland Chan Tsz-wah explained to the court the “expectations” of the West that Lai was trying to fulfil in his unsuccessful attempt to influence protesters during the turmoil.

The Jimmy Lai trial so far: daily updates on his Hong Kong national security case

West Kowloon Court heard Lai initially intended to convince “valiant” demonstrators to pull back from their aggressive tactics using Chan’s connections, believing he was closely associated with the group.

“Only when he told me at a later stage about the US government’s internal considerations, did I realise Jimmy Lai was not simply rallying for international support, but he knew certain criteria [for US support] and was trying to meet them,” said Chan, an accomplice witness.

Wayland Chan is a key prosecution witness. Photo: Handout

Chan said Lai told him the United States wanted no police or civilian fatalities and that violence should stop at some point of the protest campaign, which was triggered by a now-withdrawn extradition bill.

The US, according to Lai, also felt many popular demands and accusations against the Hong Kong government were unsubstantiated, Chan said without elaborating.

The court heard Lai’s goal was to unite all opposition fronts – be it on the streets, in the legislature or on the international stage – to coerce the government into meeting the protesters’ demands, including immediate democratic reforms.

Chan turned prosecution witness after pleading guilty to a count of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces in August 2021.

Prosecutors alleged that Lai used Chan to deliver his instructions to activists of the “Fight for Freedom, Stand with Hong Kong” (SWHK) advocacy group to instigate economic sanctions and other hostile acts from the West against Hong Kong and mainland China.

Hong Kong tycoon Jimmy Lai wanted to meet radicals ‘in bid to de-escalate’ chaos

The 76-year-old Apple Daily founder has pleaded not guilty to two conspiracy charges of collusion with foreign forces under the Beijing-decreed national security law, and a third of conspiracy to print and distribute seditious publications.

Prosecutors on Tuesday asked Chan to explain online and offline conversations he had with Lai after their first face-to-face encounter in July 2019.

Messages retrieved from Lai’s mobile phone showed the tycoon was taken aback by a construction worker being set ablaze at a protest in November that year.

The tycoon “dreaded” seeing the man being hurled with oil and set on fire, a message said. “It’s about time the young and brave should have leadership,” he said.

Chan said Lai, in a subsequent meeting at his Kadoorie Avenue home, “lambasted” the attack and said the radicals were prone to resorting to violence without showing organisation and restraint.

“If someone died [during the protests], the entire movement against the Hong Kong government would lose its moral high ground as well as international support,” Chan told the court.

The court heard Lai also cited a popular protest mantra – “yellow or blue is a question of politics; black or white is a matter of conscience” – and warned that some bottom lines could never be breached.

Chan said former opposition lawmakers Lee Cheuk-yan, Lam Cheuk-ting and Lee Wing-tat also joined the meeting with Lai on November 13, 2019.

Jimmy Lai has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Photo: Winson Wong

In another text message, Lai told Chan “excellent news” about US Senator Marco Rubio’s efforts to put a bill allowing for economic sanctions against Hong Kong to a vote.

Lai also commented on a siege at Polytechnic University that month, calling it “a big victory for police” and said the operation had “wiped out my best men”.

Separately, Chan said Lai asked him to request frontline protesters to put all plans on hold so the district council election could proceed smoothly.

The witness recalled meeting Lai face-to-face for the third time in his car in Admiralty on November 27, where the tycoon told him he already had a good grasp about the valiant camp’s movements.

Lai also praised activist Sunny Cheung Kwan-yang and said he had previously approached him for sponsorship of an online radio platform the latter was hoping to set up, Chan added.

The trial continues on Wednesday.

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