Niagara family, mayor call for hotelier Jimmy Lai to be released from Hong Kong prison as G7 ministers meet
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As G7 foreign ministers prepare to meet in Ontario’s Niagara region, the family of hotel owner Jimmy Lai and the mayor of Niagara-on-the-Lake are calling for the pro-democracy activist’s release from a Hong Kong prison.
Weary, then was arrested in 2020 and is detained at Lai Chi Kok Prison, owns Vintage Hotels, a chain of inns across the region. A British and Hong Kong citizen, he was the founder of the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, now closed.
“My uncle didn’t do anything wrong that we don’t do on a daily basis in our own country,” his niece, Erica Lepp, who lives in Niagara-on-the-Lake, told CBC News on Thursday.
“Niagara-on-the-Lake is my uncle’s Canadian home,” Lepp said, “and it’s where the majority of his Canadian family is.”
Gary Zalepa, mayor of Niagara-on-the-Lake, said in a public letter released Nov. 3 that Lai and his family “have made a lasting contribution to our community.”
Lai and his family “have strengthened the local economy, created significant employment opportunities and revitalized key heritage properties that attract visitors and support local businesses,” says the letter, released before the Niagara region hosts the G7 Forum on Security, Prosperity and Economic Resilience next week.
Zalepa said his support for Lai’s release was based “on the belief that every person deserves fair treatment under the law”, and that he also wrote to Canadian Foreign Minister Anita Anand, who is due to host the G7 ministerial meeting.
“I am proud to defend someone who has spent his life defending these same ideals,” he wrote.
Family worried about Lai’s health
Lai was considered one of the most high-profile politicians arrested in Hong Kong under a sweeping national security law imposed by China. was imposed after massive pro-democracy protests in 2019.
During his trial, which began in December 2023 and ended in August, he pleaded not guilty to two charges of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and one charge of conspiracy to publish seditious materials against the Chinese government. If convicted, he faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
According to Reuters, Lai suffered from heart palpitations and was given a heart monitor and medication, his lawyers said during his 156-day trial.
Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump also expressed support for Lai’s release to Chinese President Xi Jinping, and suggested it would benefit U.S.-China relations as well as China’s image, Reuters reported, citing sources briefed on the contents of their meeting in South Korea.
After waiting more than three years in a prison cell, Jimmy Lai was tried for treason in a Hong Kong courtroom this week. If convicted, the 76-year-old could spend the rest of his life in prison. But who is this media mogul and pro-democracy activist? And why does the Chinese government want him behind bars?
Lepp is particularly concerned about her uncle’s well-being and said he also suffers from diabetes.
Lai has been held in solitary confinement for more than 1,700 days, according to his family and rights groups.
“It’s not a healthy environment, even for a young person, let alone someone his age,” Lepp said.
Lepp said she and her family were “very happy” to see the support from the lord mayor as well as Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.
On Thursday, Sébastien Lai, Jimmy’s son, addressed Canada’s Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development via video link.
Sébastien thanked “Canada for recently joining the call for my father’s release” and shared his concerns about Lai’s health.
“He has always advocated for peace over all these years…I once again ask all of you here, who have been so incredibly supportive, to continue to shine a light on my father’s story and maintain your support because I think it is very necessary in this quite dark time.”
“We urge the release of Mr. Lai”: Carney
At an Oct. 16 news conference in the Toronto suburb of Etobicoke, Carney was asked about Lai and whether Canada would consider granting him honorary citizenship.
“We support freedom of the press and urge the release of Mr. Lai,” Carney said. “When it comes to citizenship, we have processes to become [a Canadian citizen]. I make this point for humanitarian reasons and our support for press freedom, including in Hong Kong. Above all, we take responsibility for the citizens of Canada and residents of Canada. »
Asked about Canadian politicians’ recent support for Lai’s release, Lepp suggested it was long overdue, “because my uncle has been in prison for over four years.”
“I would love it if my cousins could just hug their dad before he died.”
