A key prosecution witness in the trial of Hong Kong pro-democracy publisher Jimmy Lai took the stand this week despite concerns raised by U.N. officials that the witness may have been mistreated in custody.
Andy Li, a computer programmer who became a pro-democracy activist in 2019, gave evidence against Lai on Wednesday. Li’s testimony pertained to his role in a crowdfunding campaign that supported Hong Kong’s 2019 pro-democracy protests.
Prosecutors have alleged that Lai, a British national, masterminded the crowdfunding campaign. The 76-year-old is accused of “collusion with foreign forces” under the national security law and sedition. Lai rejects the charges. If convicted, he faces up to life in prison.
Li, meanwhile, was arrested in China in 2020 with several other people. A Washington Post investigation last year found that Li was mistreated while in Chinese custody.
'The report, based on CCTV footage, letters and interviews with those familiar with the case, detailed solitary confinement, sleep deprivation, lights in cells constantly turned on and detainees forced to sit in uncomfortable positions.
Screams were heard frequently from Li’s cell, the Post reported.
The findings, say experts, draw into question whether his testimony against Lai is coerced or untrustworthy.
Caoilfhionn Gallagher, the head of Lai’s international legal team, wrote in a post on the social media platform X, “Andy Li should not be giving evidence at all. But remember, anything he does say is unreliable.”
In January, the United Nations special rapporteur on torture, Alice Jill Edwards, wrote to Chinese authorities to express her concern about the circumstances surrounding Li’s testimony.
“I am deeply concerned that evidence that is expected to be presented against Jimmy Lai imminently may have been obtained as a result of torture or other unlawful treatment,” she wrote. “An investigation into these allegations must be conducted immediately, before any evidence is admitted into these present proceedings.”
Neither Hong Kong's Security Bureau nor its judiciary immediately replied to VOA's request for comment on Li's testimony. Authorities have previously disputed accusations that the trial against Lai is unfair.
The media watchdog Reporters Without Borders, or RSF, expressed concern about Li’s testimony in a statement on Friday.
“Hong Kong’s prosecutors must be desperate to provide convincing evidence against Jimmy Lai, but resorting to testimony from a witness who has been tortured and forcibly held in a psychiatric institution is convincing no one,” said RSF’s Asia-Pacific bureau director Cedric Alviani.
“Such testimony can in no way be considered reliable evidence and only serves to again highlight the sham nature of this trial. We call again on democracies to step up pressure on Chinese authorities to release Jimmy Lai and the 11 other press freedom defenders detained in the territory,” Alviani said.
Media and rights advocates say the trial against Lai symbolizes the rapid downfall of press freedom in Hong Kong following the introduction of China’s National Security Law in 2020.
The Chinese government and Hong Kong officials have rejected criticism that the law is harming the city-region's media environment.
