HONG KONG —Jimmy Lai, aHong Kongactivist and media mogul who was a major figure in 2019 pro-democracy protests, was convicted on all charges Monday in a landmark national security trial that has drawn international scrutiny and become a symbol of Beijing'scrackdown on dissentin the Chinese territory.
Lai, one of the most prominent critics of China's ruling Communist Party, wasarrested in 2020shortly after Beijing imposed a sweepingnational security lawin response to the anti-government protests, which roiled Hong Kong for months in 2019 and sometimes turned violent.
He was found guilty of two charges of colluding with foreign forces under the national security law, as well as a charge of conspiracy to publish seditious materials under legislation from Hong Kong's time as a British colony.
Lai, who turned 78 last week and faces life in prison, will be sentenced later and is allowed to appeal. On Monday, he appeared thin but in good spirits as he entered the courtroom wearing glasses, a green sweater and a gray suit jacket, smiling and waving to his family.
Western governments and rights groups have criticized the 156-day trial, whichbegan in December 2023, aspolitically motivated. Both the United States and Britain have called for Lai, a British citizen, to be released, and PresidentDonald Trumphas repeatedlypromised to "free" him.
In their 855-page verdict, the three handpicked judges focused on Lai's interactions with senior U.S. government officials, including meetings he had at the height of the 2019 protests with Vice PresidentMike Pence, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, national security adviser John Bolton and multiple members of Congress.
Judge Esther Toh said Lai had persistently lobbied Washington to "help bring down" the Chinese government by imposing sanctions, blockades or other hostile measures "with the excuse of helping the people of Hong Kong."
She said it was "analogous to the situation where an American national asked for help from Russia to bring down the U.S. government under the guise of helping the state of California."
The judges also said Lai had usedApple Daily, the now-defunct pro-democracy tabloid he founded in 1995, to publish a series of seditious articles aimed at inciting hatred of the Hong Kong and Chinese governments and "stirring up opposition against them."
Lai, whospent 52 days testifying, denied using his overseas connections to influence foreign policy on China and Hong Kong. He also said he never intended to "pollute" his readers' minds but was only commenting on facts.
Toh said Lai had "never wavered in his intention to destabilize" the Chinese government, citing his WhatsApp messages, live chats, Fox News interviews and social media posts. She said he continued to pursue his goals even after the national security law was enacted on June 30, 2020, but "in a less explicit way."
Lai's "only intent" was to "seek the downfall" of the Chinese Communist Party, Toh said, "even though the ultimate cost was the sacrifice of the interests of the people" of China and Hong Kong.
The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the verdict. A White House official confirmed to NBC News last month that Trump discussed Lai's case with Chinese PresidentXi Jinpingduring theirmeeting in South Koreain October.
Lai's trial is seen as a test of judicial independence and press freedom in Hong Kong, which was promised its Western-style civil liberties would be preserved for 50 years upon itsreturn to Chinese rulein 1997.
Rights groups criticized the conviction, with Human Rights Watch saying it was "both cruel and a travesty of justice."
"The Chinese government's mistreatment of Jimmy Lai aims to silence everyone who dares to criticize the Communist Party," Asia director Elaine Pearson said in a statement.
The Committee to Protect Journalists said the ruling "underscores Hong Kong's utter contempt for press freedom."
"Jimmy Lai's only crime is running a newspaper and defending democracy," Beh Lih Yi, the group's Asia-Pacific director, said in a statement. "The risk of him dying from ill health in prison increases as each day passes — he must be reunited with his family immediately."
The Hong Kong and Chinese governments say Lai has received a fair trial and that the criticism is an attempt to undermine the city's rule of law. They say press freedom continues to be protected under Hong Kong's mini-constitution.
A Chinese Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesperson said Friday that Beijing firmly supports the Hong Kong government in "bringing criminals who endanger national security to justice."
Lai has spent nearly five years in solitary confinement since his arrest in 2020, during which time he has been convicted on multiple other charges, including unauthorized assembly and fraud. His family and supporters have expressed growing concern about his health, as Lai suffers from diabetes and high blood pressure, as well as heart palpitations.
The Hong Kong government says Lai has received "adequate and comprehensive" medical services in custody and that it separates people such as Lai from other prisoners at their own request to ensure their "personal safety and well-being."
John Burns, an emeritus professor specializing in Chinese politics at the University of Hong Kong, said he was "not so sure" how significant Lai's conviction would be for Hong Kong's press freedom and autonomy.
Though the Lai trial is Hong Kong's highest-profile case stemming from the crackdown, Burns said, two other cases from last year had "much more significant" implications for the city's human rights situation.
They are the convictions of two journalists accused of sedition over their work for the now-defunct pro-democracy newspaperStand Newsand the subversion charges against47 pro-democracy figuresover their involvement in an unofficial primary election, 45 of whom were convicted or pleaded guilty.
Open dissent has been chilledin Hong Kong under the Beijing-imposed national security law andrelated local legislation, both of which officials say were necessary to restore stability after the 2019 protests. Most of the city's pro-democracy figures have been imprisoned, quit politics or moved overseas.
The verdict in Lai's case comes a day after Hong Kong's last major opposition party, the Democratic Party,disbanded after a vote by its members, who cited pressure from Chinese officials or intermediaries.
It also comes a week after a"patriots only" legislative electionheld under rules that were changed in 2021 to require national security vetting of candidates. Officials have defended the new rules as necessary to restore stability, but critics say they have sidelined groups such as the Democratic Party and left the legislature without any meaningful opposition.
Voter turnout was 31.9%, a near-record low that is far lower than it was in elections before the legal overhaul.