Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Co-Chair of the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC), issued the below statement following a Hong Kong court’s unjust conviction of Jimmy Lai—the founder of newspaper Apple Daily and an outspoken advocate for democracy and free speech—on fraudulent, politically motivated national security and sedition charges:

                “Jimmy Lai’s ‘guilty’ verdict by a Hong Kong court—clearly orchestrated by the Chinese Communist Party—is an affront to justice everywhere. Promoting democratic ideals and free speech is not, and should not be, a crime.

                “In addition to Jimmy’s leadership as an advocate for democracy and free speech, he is a model of Christian conscience and a hero of the Catholic Faith. Though an evil regime seeks to crush him, his witness to Truth—and to Jesus as the Truth—will outlive and outshine his oppressors.

                “Right now, Jimmy has been deprived of medical care, and his health is declining due to harsh prison conditions. We call upon Hong Kong authorities to release Jimmy on simple humanitarian grounds, as a humane gesture to him and his family.”

                At a Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) hearing chaired by Smith in 2023, entitled “One City, Two Legal Systems: Political Prisoners and the Erosion of the Rule of Law in Hong Kong,” Jimmy’s son, Sebastien, gave compelling testimony about how his father has been vilified and targeted by the CCP and Hong Kong authorities:

                “My father has never advocated for violence. He is a man of peace. His only so-called ‘crime’ is to disagree and condemn the actions of the CCP and the Hong Kong authorities that seek to silence critical voices. For that, he faces the rest of his life in prison.

                “My father is a victim of an autocratic State which will not tolerate dissent or criticism. It is clear that there is no longer ‘One Country, Two Systems’ but that Beijing is now controlling Hong Kong. The [National Security Law] spells that out. His treatment is grossly unfair.”

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