Begin typing your search above and press return to search.
proflie-avatar
Login
exit_to_app
The smouldering of anger in Ladakh
access_time 29 March 2024 4:20 AM GMT
Democracy that banks on the electorate
access_time 28 March 2024 5:34 AM GMT
Lessons to learn from Moscow terror attack
access_time 27 March 2024 6:10 AM GMT
Gaza
access_time 26 March 2024 4:34 AM GMT
The poison is not in words, but inside
access_time 25 March 2024 5:42 AM GMT
DEEP READ
Schools breeding hatred
access_time 14 Sep 2023 10:37 AM GMT
Ukraine
access_time 16 Aug 2023 5:46 AM GMT
Ramadan: Its essence and lessons
access_time 13 March 2024 9:24 AM GMT
When ‘Jai Sree Ram’ becomes a death call
access_time 15 Feb 2024 9:54 AM GMT
exit_to_app
Homechevron_rightWorldchevron_rightBail granted to Hong...

Bail granted to Hong Kong pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai

text_fields
bookmark_border
Bail granted to Hong Kong pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai
cancel
camera_alt

Jimmy Lai (file image)

Hong Kong: Hong Kong's pro-democracy media mogul Jimmy Lai has been granted bail by Hong Kong high court.

Lai, 73 and the most high-profile person charged under a controversial new security law was remanded in custody earlier this month but will now be placed under house arrest. He was ordered to pay a $1.3 million bond, the BBC reported on Wednesday.

The founder of Apple Daily newspaper is a fierce critic of China's authorities.

He is accused of fraud and conspiring with foreign forces, and could spend years in jail if convicted.

Beijing has said the new security law will return stability to the territory after a year of unrest, but critics say it is aimed at silencing dissent.

Judge Alex Lee set a number of other conditions for bail, including Lai having to remain at home, surrender all travel documents and hold no meetings with foreign officials or foreign institutions deemed to be hostile to China.

Lai has also been banned from posting on social media, issuing statements or speaking to the media.

He was charged under the security law on December 11. However, he has been in custody since December 2, after being denied bail on a separate charge of fraud related to the lease of a building that houses the newspaper.

His legal team appealed against the denial of bail, leading to Wednesday's hearing. Both the security law and fraud cases in which he is charged are set to return to court in April.

One of the city's most prominent supporters of the pro-democracy movement, Lai is estimated to be worth more than $1 billion.

Having made his initial fortune in the clothing industry, he later ventured into media and founded Next Digital, the parent company of Apple Daily - a tabloid that is critical of the mainland Chinese leadership.

In a local media landscape increasingly fearful of Beijing, Lai is a persistent thorn for China - both through his publications and writing that openly criticises the Chinese leadership.

It has seen him become a hero for many residents in Hong Kong. But on the mainland he is viewed as a "traitor" who threatens Chinese national security.

(IANS feed with minor edits)

Show Full Article
TAGS:Hong Kongpro-democracymedia mogul Jimmy Laigets bail
Next Story