Jimmy Lai’s trial is a headline-worthy example of injustice
A new biography aims to keep the public’s attention on the pro-democracy tycoon

Spectators might have expected him to be dispirited. But Jimmy Lai grinned from the stand in late November 2024; spotting loved ones in the public gallery, he waved and blew kisses. The pro-democracy media tycoon was testifying in his national-security trial, which began in December 2023. Already the 77-year-old has been locked behind bars for more than four years, mostly in solitary confinement. This was a show of defiance from a man who has spent his life defending freedom—and will probably die doing so.
This article appeared in the Culture section of the print edition under the headline “No crime, plenty of punishment”
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