Sebastien Lai, son of Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai, holds a sign calling for the release of his father on the sidelines of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland, September 27, 2023. REUTERS/Gabrielle聽Tetrault-Farber
GENEVA 鈥� The son of Jimmy Lai, a media tycoon jailed in Hong Kong, said on Wednesday it was in the interest of the former British colony to release his father and not let him die in jail.
Sebastien Lai, who was in Geneva to take part in a British-organised event on media freedom in Hong Kong, has not seen his 75-year-old father in three years.
鈥淚 am optimistic because I believe that there鈥檚 no benefit in the Hong Kong government having my father die in jail,鈥� Sebastien Lai said on the prospect of his father鈥檚 release.
鈥淗e鈥檚 a pro-democracy activist, a publisher, and he鈥檚 also an incredibly peaceful man 鈥� Now that they鈥檝e taken all that he has, keeping him in prison is just cruel.鈥�
Jimmy Lai is the founder of now shut pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily and one of the most prominent Hong Kong critics of China鈥檚 Communist Party leadership, including President Xi Jinping.
This week he marked his 1,000th day in a Hong Kong prison on charges related to a law on national security that Beijing imposed on Hong Kong in 2020 after months of anti-government protests. The law punishes acts including subversion, collusion with foreign forces and terrorism with up to life in prison.
Hong Kong鈥檚 government said in a statement on Thursday it strongly disapproved of the repeated attempt by the United Kingdom and other countries to make 鈥渟kewed remarks鈥� against the city鈥檚 human rights situation.
鈥淪uch remarks amount to political manipulation that disregards and even twists facts,鈥� it said. Countries should respect international laws and norms governing international relations, and 鈥渋mmediately stop interfering in Hong Kong matters, which are purely China鈥檚 internal affairs,鈥� it added.
In the run-up to Wednesday鈥檚 event, China鈥檚 diplomatic mission in Geneva had pressed countries to boycott it, saying issues related to Hong Kong were internal Chinese affairs.
Despite calling for a boycott, the Chinese mission sent a representative to the event, who said it amounted to meddling in China鈥檚 affairs.
In a separate statement, the commissioner鈥檚 office of China鈥檚 Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Hong Kong accused the United Kingdom and United States of 鈥渕aliciously slandering鈥� the national security law and 鈥渂latantly supporting the anti-China and disruptive Hong Kong activist Jimmy Lai.鈥�
Rebecca Vincent, director of campaigns at Reporters Without Borders, who also took part in the event, welcomed China鈥檚 presence.
鈥淭he Chinese government, frankly, does not like to hear from organizations like us,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 hope they took careful notes and report everything back to Beijing because they should hear what we have to say.鈥� Sebastien Lai 鈥� who said his father, a British national, was not being granted consular access 鈥� described his father as a man who always led by example.
鈥淥f course, he鈥檚 human. He fears,鈥� Sebastien Lai said. 鈥淏ut he knows that he can鈥檛 bend to that fear.鈥�