By Jessie Pang and James Pomfret
March 6 (Reuters) – Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai will not appeal against his conviction and 20-year jail term for collusion with foreign forces and sedition, his lawyer said on Friday, after a landmark case that sparked international criticism.
The founder of the now-shuttered pro-democracy Apple Daily newspaper, Lai, 78, was one of the most outspoken critics of the ruling Chinese Communist Party.
A nearly five-year legal saga ended with his sentencing in February following a December conviction on two counts of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and one count of publishing seditious materials.
A member of Lai’s domestic legal team told Reuters his client would not appeal the conviction and sentencing, which drew criticism from countries such as Britain and the United States.
“We can confirm we have clear and definitive instructions not to lodge an appeal against conviction or sentence,” he said, speaking on condition of anonymity, but gave no reason for the decision.
Separately, Fung Wai-kong, the former editor-in-chief of the paper’s English news section, launched an appeal on Monday against his 10-year jail term in the same national security case.
Lai’s son and daughter have warned he might die in prison, as his health is deteriorating after spending more than five years in solitary confinement. He has diabetes and health problems such as heart palpitations and high blood pressure.
Rights groups and numerous democratic countries have called for Lai’s release.
U.S. President Donald Trump raised the matter with his Chinese counterpart, Xi Jinping, and is expected to follow up in a closely anticipated visit to Beijing at the end of this month.
Hong Kong and Beijing, however, say Lai received a fair trial and all are treated equally under the national security law that has restored order to the city since mass pro-democracy protests in 2019.
Last month, in a separate case, Hong Kong’s Court of Appeal handed Lai a rare legal victory by overturning his conviction for fraud and quashing a 69-month sentence.
(Reporting by Jessie Pang and James Pomfret; Writing by Anne Marie Roantree; Editing by Michael Perry and Clarence Fernandez)
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