The closing arguments of Jimmy Lai‘s national security trial have been further postponed over a “medical issue” relating to the media tycoon’s heart.
The three-judge panel said on Friday that the proceedings will resume next Monday after Lai, 77, received medication prescribed by a doctor and a Holter monitor – a portable device that tracks the heart’s electrical activity.
The Apple Daily founder appeared thinner than he was five months ago, when proceedings were adjourned following his 52-day oral testimony.
But the jailed tycoon, who stands accused of foreign collusion charges that could land him in prison for life, also appeared spirited – nodding, waving and smiling to his family sitting at the public gallery and his lawyers, as he has done throughout his trial.
Lai’s defence lawyer, Robert Pang, told the court on Friday that his client “had some episodes where he felt that he was collapsing” as well as heart “palpitations” in recent months, but he did not want “undue attention to be concentrated on his health.”
Judge Esther Toh read out a memo prepared by an in-prison medical officer stating that “no abnormality” was detected in Lai’s heart, but a specialist had recommended medication and the heart monitor.
The judges, handpicked by Hong Kong’s leader to preside over national security cases, rejected the defence’s application to have Lai be absent from the closing argument proceedings, which have been earmarked for eight days. However, they postponed the first hearing until next week so that Lai could receive proper medical attention.
Multiple delays
Lai has pleaded not guilty to two counts of conspiring to collude with foreign forces under the Beijing-imposed national security law, and a third count of conspiring to publish seditious materials under colonial-era legislation.
The founder of the now-shuttered pro-democracy tabloid Apple Daily has been behind bars since December 2020 and his national security trial began in December 2023.
The closing arguments were originally scheduled to begin on Thursday, but a heavy downpour – which prompted the Observatory to raise the “Black” rainstorm signal for about three hours in the morning – led the Judiciary to cancel hearings for the day.
Prosecutors have accused the media tycoon of requesting foreign countries to engage in hostile activities, such as imposing sanctions, against authorities in Hong Kong and mainland China.
Lai also allegedly used the now-shuttered tabloid Apple Daily – which he founded in 1995 – to publish seditious remarks against the authorities and encourage the public to participate in the pro-democracy protests and unrest in 2019.
He allegedly not only conspired with senior editorial staff of Apple Daily but also was the “mastermind and financial supporter” of the Fight for Freedom; Stand with Hong Kong (SWHK) advocacy group, which lobbied for international sanctions against Hong Kong and China.
During the trial, multiple prosecution witnesses testified against the former media boss, including senior Apple Daily staff members Cheung Kim-hung and Chan Pui-man, as well as activists linked to the SWHK group, such as Andy Li and Chan Tsz-wah.
Lai also took the witness stand for 52 days. In his testimony, often interpolated with spirited exchanges between himself and prosecutors, Lai denied allegations of foreign collusion and defended his political beliefs.
But he was also grilled by prosecutors and the three judges presiding over the trial about his foreign ties and past remarks, including what he wrote in his Apple Daily column and said in interviews with international media.
Beijing inserted national security legislation directly into Hong Kong’s mini-constitution in June 2020 following a year of pro-democracy protests and unrest. It criminalised subversion, secession, collusion with foreign forces and terrorist acts – broadly defined to include disruption to transport and other infrastructure. The move gave police sweeping new powers and led to hundreds of arrests amid new legal precedents, while dozens of civil society groups disappeared. The authorities say it restored stability and peace to the city, rejecting criticism from trade partners, the UN and NGOs.
