Hong Kong’s highest court began its first trial on former media mogul Jimmy Lai’s role in pro-democracy protests in 2019, after a wave of foreign judge departures renewed scrutiny of the city’s judiciary.
The Court of Final Appeal on Monday began hearing the appeal from Lai and six former lawmakers who are seeking to overturn their convictions for participating in an unlawful protest in August 2019. A lower court previously acquitted the seven pro-democracy activists of charges of organizing that rally. but upheld their guilty verdict for participating in it.
The hearing comes days after a prominent British judge, Jonathan Sumption, resigned from the Supreme Court in one of three exits announced this month and warned of a “serious danger” to the rule of law in the financial center as a result of the tightening grip from Beijing.
