The international legal team for the imprisoned journalist Jimmy Lai, who is on trial for national-security offences in Hong Kong, has filed an urgent appeal with the United Nations special rapporteur on torture regarding one of the key prosecution witnesses in Lai’s trial, according to a report in The Guardian.
His team, which is being led by Irish-born Caoilfhionn Gallagher KC (small picture), say there is “credible evidence” that Andy Li, a 33-year-old former pro-democracy activist, was tortured while in prison in mainland China before he confessed to allegedly conspiring with Lai to collude with foreign forces.
Lai (main picture) has pleaded not guilty to the charge, as well as a second charge of sedition. If convicted, Lai, 76, faces spending the rest of his life in prison.
Lai founded and published the popular Apple Daily newspaper, which was shut down by the Chinese authorities in June 2021, shortly after five of its senior executives were arrested and its assets frozen
Psychiatric facility
The Guardian says that Li was one of 12 Hong Kong activists who were caught trying to flee by speedboat to Taiwan in August 2020.
He was held in a prison in Shenzhen, a city in southern China, for seven months, for illegal border crossing. In March 2021, he was returned to Hong Kong, where he was charged with conspiring with foreign powers.
In August of that year, he pleaded guilty to charges that named Lai as a co-conspirator, along with Lai’s aide Mark Simon and the activist Finn Lau, who is now based in Britain.
Li is now being held in a psychiatric facility in Hong Kong, something which Lai’s international legal team says raises “grave concerns”. He is expected to appear as a witness within the next few weeks.
Testimony 'coerced'
The Guardian quoted Gallagher as saying: “There is credible evidence that Andy Li was subjected to torture, inhuman and degrading treatment, and that his testimony has been coerced.
“Despite this, the prosecution in Jimmy Lai’s show trial has made clear that they are relying upon Andy Li as a key witness.”
Lai’s international legal team manages the international profile of his case and is not connected to his local defence counsel, which is acting for him in the proceedings in Hong Kong.