Jimmy Lai, media strongman in Hong Kong
Since last year, Hong Kong has experienced the biggest revolt against the Chinese regime in its history since the territory reverted to Chinese rule in 1997. Thousands of Hong Kongers took to the streets to protest against Beijing and show their discontent with the bill authorizing the extradition of suspected criminals to China.
Members of the international organization Human Rights Watch declared at the time that "no one would be safe [in Hong Kong], including activists, human rights lawyers, and social workers. This controversial measure was also criticized by the European Union, the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.
The COVID-19 crisis paralyzed the protests, but the context remains the same, even more so when on June 30 the Beijing government enacted the National Security Law, which punishes anyone who commits crimes of subversion, secession, terrorism and collusion with foreign forces with up to life imprisonment.
On Monday, Jimmy Lai, one of Hong Kong's leading democracy activists, was arrested for alleged collusion with foreign forces under the national security law. This arrest marks the arrest of the highest profile figure so far.
Lai, 71, is a publishing magnate and founder of the Beijing-critical Apple Daily. In 2008 his net worth was estimated at 1.6 billion dollars, according to Forbes magazine, making him one of the richest people in the former British colony.
In an interview with the Reuters news agency last May, Lai already acknowledged the possibility that the Chinese authorities could arrest him. In that interview, he pledged to remain in Hong Kong: "What I have, this place gave me, I will continue to fight until the last day. It will be an honor", said Lai.
"The so-called foreign influence is our only salvation. I believe that, if the Americans support us very strongly, the other countries will follow. America has to take the lead," he said in the interview.
The tycoon was born in mainland China and was smuggled into Hong Kong on a small fishing boat when he was only 12 years old. Almost in extreme poverty, he began working in a textile factory and by the age of 25 had founded a successful clothing business, making sweaters for major U.S. retailers.
What changed the sector, in Lai's own words, was the revolt in Tiananmen Square in 1989, when thousands of students rose up against the communist regime. This prompted him to enter the world of the media, where he could look at the young people on the square with freedom.
Lai owns Next digital, one of the key bastions of press freedom in Hong Kong, which is published by the Apple Daily. He has since been branded by the Chinese authorities as a "traitor" and a danger to the country's security.
According to the Hong Kong police, on their Twitter account "so far, seven people between the ages of 39 and 72 have been arrested on suspicion of violating the national security law," and they have warned that the arrests will continue. The tycoon was released on bail early Wednesday morning, 40 hours after his arrest under the new security law passed by Beijing for the former British colony.