Hong Kong activist Lai's daughter says she's "grieving" sedition conviction

Hours aft Jimmy Lai, a businessman and pro-democracy paper proprietor successful Hong Kong, was found guilty connected nationalist information and sedition charges, his girl Claire Lai told reporters successful Washington, D.C., she hopes planetary unit tin spare her begetter from spending the remainder of his beingness successful prison.

"We expected the verdict," she told CBS News. "As overmuch arsenic you tin expect that, you tin lone beryllium truthful acceptable for it. So I americium grieving."

Lai, 78, was recovered blameworthy connected 3 charges: 1 sedition complaint and 2 charges of violating the National Security Law, a controversial Hong Kong law instituted successful 2020 pursuing pro-democracy protests successful 2019. The charges were conspiracy to perpetrate collusion with a overseas state and conspiracy to people seditious material. 

Lai is the laminitis of Apple Daily, a pro-democracy paper successful Hong Kong that was often sharply captious of the Chinese authorities and its increasing power implicit the city. The insubstantial closed successful 2021 aft constabulary raided the newsroom, arrested reporters and froze the publication's assets. Jimmy Lai was arrested successful 2020 and held successful custody since.

Jonathan Price, portion of Jimmy Lai's planetary ineligible team, said the results of the proceedings were unsurprising, but argued they bespeak China's reneging of commitments to the regularisation of instrumentality successful Hong Kong and agreements made betwixt the British and Chinese governments erstwhile Hong Kong was returned to China successful 1997. The authorities successful Beijing had agreed to assistance Hong Kong autonomy until astatine slightest 2047, but it has increasingly exerted power implicit the enclave.

"It's 855 pages of obfuscation, fluff, diversion with immoderate colorful language, but nary substance," helium told CBS News. "It's bonzer that a papers of that magnitude involving a lawsuit astir idiosyncratic who ran a property enactment doesn't notation substantively, property freedom, state of speech, state to protest, oregon immoderate quality rights."

Claire Lai past spoke to her begetter successful June of this year, and said his information has noticeably deteriorated. She described that his nails are changing colors and falling disconnected and his teeth are rotting. She besides worries astir his diabetes and bosom palpitations. She blames his situation conditions and solitary confinement for his deterioration. 

Claire Lai, her household and her ineligible squad fearfulness that appeals could instrumentality implicit 8 years and fearfulness Jimmy Lai whitethorn not unrecorded agelong capable to endure the process. 

"My begetter does not person 8 years. If we hold to the extremity of the appeals process, determination volition not beryllium a antheral astatine the extremity of that process," she told CBS News.

On Monday, President Trump and British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper some called for the merchandise of Jimmy Lai. 

In the Oval Office, Mr. Trump said, "I consciousness truthful badly. I spoke to President Xi astir it, and I asked to see his release. He's not well. He's an older man, and he's not well. So I did enactment that petition out, we'll spot what happens."

Cooper emphasized that Jimmy Lai is simply a British national and told Parliament that she had summoned the Chinese Ambassador aft proceeding the verdict. 

"But for the involvement of Jimmy Lai, for his family, but besides for the radical of Hong Kong, for the associated Declaration we signed, and for the regularisation of law, we volition not relent connected this," she said. "Joined by nations crossed the world, we telephone again for the contiguous merchandise of Jimmy Lai." 

Earlier successful the year, Claire Lai met with members of Congress connected Capitol Hill, culminating successful a bipartisan missive asking for her father's release. 

As the holidays near, Claire Lai remembers the fewer times she saw her begetter a twelvemonth since 2020, connected their birthdays and Christmas. She said she hopes she tin spot her begetter again someday, without their conversations recorded and without equipped situation guards lasting by.

"One of the galore things I've learned from my begetter is that you person to look adversity and difficulties with a definite grade of cheer and spirit," she told CBS News. "My begetter has shown that not adjacent his failing wellness tin alleviate him of the load of truth, and that's wherefore helium chose to instrumentality the basal for truthful galore days."