HONG KONG – Prominent Hong Kong democracy advocate and newspaper founder Jimmy Lai returned to court Monday to contest an attempt by the government to keep him in jail while facing charges under a sweeping new national security law.
Lai was brought to the Court of Final Appeal in a prison van and entered through an inflatable tunnel virtually connected to the van’s door as large numbers of journalists sought to capture the scene.
Lai was arrested last month in a sweep against pro-democracy activists accused over their involvement in 2019 anti-government protests.
First refused bail, Lai was released on appeal, leading to attacks on the judiciary from the ruling Communist Party’s mouthpiece People’s Daily.