HONG KONG (Reuters) – Hong Kong media tycoon Jimmy Lai has been arrested on suspicion of collusion with foreign troops under the new national security law, his top assistant said on Twitter, in what is the highest-profile arrest still under the law.
PHOTO PHOTO: Media mogul Jimmy Lai Chee-ying, founder of Apple Daily, speaks during an interview in response to national security legislation in Hong Kong, China May 29, 2020. REUTERS / Tyrone Siu
Lai has been one of the most prominent democracy activists in the Chinese-ruled city and a fierce critic of Beijing, which had imposed the sweeping new law on June 30 for Hong Kong, condemning Western countries.
The new security law punishes everything China considers for undermining, secession, terrorism and collusion with foreign troops with up to life in prison.
Critics say it is crushing freedoms in the semi-autonomous city, while supporters say it will bring stability to longer-term pro-democracy protests last year.
“Jimmy Lai is currently being arrested for collusion with foreign powers,” said Mark Simon, a senior executive at Lai’s media company Next Digital.0282.HK), which publishes local tabloid Apple Daily, said early Monday.
Police did not immediately comment.
Apple Daily reported that Lai was taken from his home in Ho Man Tin early Monday. The paper says one of Lai’s sons, Ian, was also arrested at his home.
About 10 other people were arrested Monday, local newspaper South China Morning Post reported, without naming the sources.
Lai was also arrested this year on illegal assembly charges, along with other leading activists, related to protests last year.
In an interview with Reuters in May, Lai promised to stay in Hong Kong and fight for democracy, although he expected to be one of the goals of the new legislation.
Before Monday, 15 people were arrested under the law, including four from 16-21 in the last month over social media posts.
The new legislation has sent a chill through Hong Kong, affecting many aspects of life. Activists have disbanded their organizations, while some have fled across the city.
Slogans have been declared illegal, certain songs and activities such as the formation of human chains have been banned in schools, and books have been taken to public libraries.
The United States on Friday imposed sanctions on Hong Kong’s Carrie Lam, the current and former land police officer and eight other top officials for what Washington says is its role in restricting political freedoms on the land.
Beijing’s top representative office in Hong Kong described the sanctions as “clowning actions.”
Beijing and the Hong Kong government have said the law will not affect rights and freedoms, and that it is necessary to plug security loops. They said it would target only a small minority of ‘troublemakers’.
Report by Marius Zaharia; Edited by Shri Navaratnam and Gerry Doyle
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