Jimmy Lai funded anti-China propaganda, court hears

Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper, lent HK$5 million ($639,000) to a local activist to support the distribution of a global anti-China propaganda campaign.

The propaganda was disseminated in 17 media outlets across 13 countries, as well as on Google and Facebook.

The details emerged during a hearing in a Hong Kong court on Wednesday — the 44th day of Lai's national security trial.

Andy Li Yu-hin, a core organizer of the anti-China group Fight for Freedom, Stand with Hong Kong, told the court that he initiated the propaganda campaign in 2019 and received funds from two companies allegedly controlled by Lai and Lai's assistant, Mark Simon.

Li, one of 12 fugitives who attempted to flee to Taiwan by boat in August 2020, had pleaded guilty in 2021 to conspiring to collude with external forces to endanger national security in a separate case and is awaiting sentencing.

During his testimony, Li said that he began working with paralegal Chan Tsz-wah on the campaign in June 2019. Chan has also pleaded guilty to conspiring to collude with external forces to endanger national security in a separate case and is awaiting sentencing.

At the time of their collaboration, protests were escalating in the city against a government-introduced extradition bill, and the G20 summit was approaching in Japan, with attendance of the world's major economies, including China.

Li testified that he decided to publish anti-China advertisements in global media outlets to draw international attention to the social unrest in Hong Kong and to exert pressure on the central government and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government.

Li began fundraising on the social media platform Telegram, where he met Chan, and raised about HK$6.73 million in a few weeks, Li said.

He planned to publish the advertisements before the opening of the G20 summit, but the fundraising account was temporarily frozen by the payment service provider, which prevented the transfer of funds to the media outlets' accounts before the deadline.

In case the plan failed, Li decided to cover the expenses himself and later reimburse himself from the fundraising account. However, his savings of about HK$3 million were insufficient.

Chan later contacted Li privately, offering to find someone to provide about HK$5 million for the campaign, with the understanding that the money would be returned at a later date.

Li said Chan did not disclose the identity of the lender, but he noticed the names "LAIS Hotel" and "Dico" on the remittance slips. Prosecutors alleged that both companies were controlled by Lai and Simon.

Seized documents and receipts from Li's residence showed that his fundraising expenditures included HK$5.96 million for newspaper advertising and HK$60,000 for online advertising.

Prosecutors presented some advertisements and corresponding media outlets' receipts in court, revealing that the payment to The Guardian, The Washington Post, France's Le Monde, and Italy's Corriere della Sera newspapers were covered by Lai's companies.

Lai's trial began on Dec 18 and is expected to last about 80 days.

He faces one count of conspiracy related to seditious publications, and two counts of conspiracy to collude with external forces to endanger national security. The sedition charge and one of the collusion charges were also brought against three Apple Daily-related companies. Another collusion charge against Lai has been left on the court file at the prosecution's request.

(Source: China Daily)