China claims that Hong Kong democracy is alive and well. Except anyone who
opposes the Communist Party is being systematically shut down. Ah…democracy!
Welcome to China Uncensored, I’m Chris Chappell. It’s a great day for democracy in Hong Kong…
that is, if you’re the Chinese Communist Party.
You see, one of Hong Kong’s biggest democracy activists is currently being given a show trial.
And after they find him guilty, the plan is to lock him up and throw away the keys.
Yes, this spectacle is more predetermined than pro wrestling. Only the CCP doesn’t
have the luxury of blaming their brain damage on concussions. Or Slim Jim.
Jimmy Lai fled to Hong Kong from China at age 12. He worked his way up in the fashion industry…
And made his fortune as the owner of the men’s clothing brand Giordano.
It’s a real American dream… in Hong Kong… with an Italian-named company.
But after watching the 1989 Tiananmen Square
Massacre in Beijing, he felt he had to do something more.
He founded the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily in 1995…
And was on the front lines of the Hong Kong democracy
protests as China repeatedly tried to take away Hong Kong’s freedoms.
After the UK gave Hong Kong to China in 1997,
The CCP promised that for 50 years, Hong Kong would largely remain independent.
It was a one-country, two systems model:
communism in the mainland and while Hong Kong had Western freedoms.
But having a highly successful beacon of freedom on its coast went against
the CCP narrative that communism was the reason for all of China’s triumphs.
So in June 2020, Beijing imposed a national security law on Hong Kong
that essentially made Hong Kong just another Chinese province.
Which is shocking… that it took China 23 years to pull something like this.
Most people thought they would have only made it five years tops before they went power tripping.
Shortly after that law was passed, a lot of democracy activists fled.
However, Jimmy Lai stayed. He told the Associated Press,
“If I leave, not only do I disgrace myself, I’d discredit Apple Daily,
I’d undermine the solidarity of the democratic movement.”
It’s wild to see a wealthy businessman with so much integrity. This would be
like seeing Jeff Bezos protesting for longer — or any — bathroom breaks.
Not long after he said that, Apple Daily was raided twice, and Jimmy Lai was arrested.
A top aide said Lai is being held over suspected collusion with foreign
forces under the controversial national security law imposed by Beijing in June.
He’s one of 7 people police said they arrested in raids on Monday.
In 2021, Apple Daily’s assets were frozen, and it was forced to shut down.
Other pro-democracy media, like Stand News and Citizen News, were also closed down.
As of 2021, The Committee to Protect Journalists said eight Hong Kong
journalists had been imprisoned under the national security law.
You know how they say the pen is mightier than the sword? The
CCP sees that as a literal threat. “Watch out! He has a pen! Grab him!”
Since then, six Apple Daily staff have pleaded guilty to…
“conspiracy to commit collusion with foreign forces to endanger national security.”
The government claims that Apple Daily’s calls for the international community to punish China
and Hong Kong over the national security law showed it was colluding with foreign forces.
Which just goes to show how vague the definition for “national security” is under the law.
The other Apple Daily staff will be sentenced after Jimmy Lai,
who China says was the mastermind behind the collusion plot. That’s just one reason why
this trial is so significant. I’ll tell you more after the break.
Welcome back. Jimmy Lai has been held
in a maximum security prison in solitary confinement for three and a half years.
Of course, all the people who suffered under China’s
Zero Covid policy hear that and think, “same.”
In December of 2020, Lai was charged with a lease violation that, under normal circumstances,
would have been considered a civil case. However, the case was tried in criminal court,
and he was given five years and nine months behind bars, as well as a 257 thousand dollar fine.
Yes, you heard that right, that was for a *lease violation*. Even Singapore hears that and goes,
“Jeez, even our punishments aren’t that severe.”
About a week after that, he was charged with violating the national
security law and denied bail. In April 2021, he was sentenced
to another 14 months for taking part in two 2019 pro-democracy demonstrations.
About a month later, he was given another 14 months in prison for
organizing a different 2019 “illegal” protest.
I’m surprised they didn’t throw in another 14 months for not sorting his recycling.
According to Reuters, his bankers were also threatened with jail time if they
helped him move his money around. So now, after being behind bars for
three and a half years, Jimmy Lai, now 76, is facing his biggest trial yet for three
counts of colluding with foreign forces and one charge of sedition.
The trial began last week and is expected to last at least 80 days. Lai has dual
citizenship with the UK, so it’s being watched very closely around the world.
The UK government said its consulate there has tried
repeatedly to get access to him but that the prisons haven’t allowed it.
One UK official said this is because “China considers anyone of Chinese heritage born
in China to be a Chinese national” Yes, China sees all Chinese people
like pandas. No matter where they go, they always belong to China.
And as Lai shows, they also enjoy keeping them in cages for most of their lives.
There’s a 100% conviction rate for national security cases in Hong Kong,
so if the past is prologue, he’s going to be convicted.
The question now is just how much more time he’ll have to serve.
Under the national security law, you can be imprisoned for life. And given what a
high-profile activist he was, I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s what happens.
Already his trial has gotten off to a rocky start.
Last November, he tried to hire UK lawyer Timothy Owen as his Defense. Hong Kong’s highest court
agreed, but the Hong Kong government overruled that, saying it was a national security issue to
have a foreigner work on a national security case. Jimmy Lai appealed the government’s
decision but lost. After his case, the Hong Kong
legislature made it illegal for foreign lawyers to work on any cases related to national security.
He’s also been denied a trial by a jury, which used to be standard practice for crimes like
this. Instead, three judges appointed by the Hong Kong government will decide his case.
Gee, I wonder why they have a 100% conviction rate.
According to a Washington Post investigation, one of the government’s key witnesses was
mistreated while in custody. This raises the question of whether his testimony against Lai
is true or is being coerced by Beijing. At the start of the trial, the court heard
arguments from Lai’s legal team about whether the charge of sedition could even go ahead. His
lawyers say charges should have been brought within 6 months of the crime being committed.
And I assume the court’s response was to laugh maniacally in the lawyers’ faces until they sat
back down, then continue laughing like super villains for another 12 minutes.
Both the US and UK governments have called Jimmy Lai’s case political and
have called on the government to release him immediately.
And I assume the government’s response was to laugh maniacally until the US and UK sat
back down, then continue laughing like super villains for another 24 minutes.
The US, British, Australian and Canadian consulates have
also sent representatives to his trial. The Hong Kong government is now warning
foreign governments and media not to get involved,
saying it could jeopardize Jimmy Lai getting a “fair trial”.
Oh the irony. If the Chinese government had a little more self awareness,
this would be really embarrassing.
But Lai isn’t the only CCP target, and the Chinese government’s reach is going well beyond Hong Kong.
I’ll tell you more after the break. Welcome back.
Jimmy Lai’s trial has put a spotlight on how Beijing is systematically dismantling
Hong Kong’s freedoms. But he’s far from the only one they’re going after.
Over 250 people have been arrested under the national security law,
And Over 200 thousand people have fled Hong Kong since the law was imposed.
One such activist, Finn Lau , fled to the UK, where he believes he’s been spied on.
Earlier this year, he was contacted by a man who claimed to be a journalist from the
Toronto Guardian who wanted to interview him. A Channel 4 news reporter recorded the interview,
then asked a few questions of her own. Reporter: We spoke to the Toronto
Guardian’s editor. They’ve never heard of you. You’ve never worked for them before.
Journalist: I’m not sure if
you reached the correct organization. Reporter: How do you spell your surname?
Journalist: So again, these are very personal questions.
Reporter: It’s strange that you don’t know how to spell your own surname. Who’s your
boss? Journalist: Who’s my boss? That’s pretty specific.
I don’t think that’s appropriate for this interview.
Either that person is a spy, or they got brutalized in a spelling bee as a child and asking
them to spell anything triggers massive PTSD. Finn Lau has been trying to get UK cities to drop
their sister city affiliations with China as an act of protest. He thinks this “journalist” was
trying to gather information on him so the Chinese government could disrupt his work.
Lau also said he had met with a UK Parliamentary
researcher who was later arrested and charged with spying for China.
It’s not just spying, though.
In July, the Hong Kong government offered a one
million Hong Kong dollar bounty for 8 democracy activists who fled overseas.
It also promised to “’pursue them until the end.’”
Yup, nothing says you’re the good guys like hiring international
bounty hunters to potentially kill people for asking for their freedom.
Earlier this month, the Hong Kong government announced bounties for
another five Hong Kong activists living overseas.
Anna Kwok, the Executive Director of the Hong Kong democracy Council, had a bounty
put on her in July. She says this has had a chilling effect on all overseas Hong Kongers.
“Even though I’m in the land of the free, I am not free.
I am trapped in this constant fear of being hunted.
And this is the CCP’s goal — they want to cripple me
and cripple my ability to advocate for Hong Kong.”
Their goal is to inspire terror in people
that disagree with them. Like some kind of… terror-*ists*, if you will.
What’s made it worse is reports of actual violence against Hong Kongers.
Finn Lau said he was attacked at night while walking down a street in London.
His attackers beat him up but didn’t take his wallet or phone. He’s convinced they were working
for the Chinese government and only stopped beating him because they thought he was dead.
In June, a group of Hong Kong activists said they
were attacked after attending a Hong Kong rally in Southampton, England.
Southampton police later said they charged a 23-year-old man with racially aggravated assault.
However, the charges were later dropped,
because of “issues concerning identification of the offender.”
Hmm, I wonder if the Beijing embassy had anything
to do with them not being able to identify the guy.
Back in Hong Kong, things are even worse for those who stayed.
The government has reformed the electoral system so only “patriots” can run for office.
This has resulted in the lowest turnout since the UK handover in 1997 for district elections…
As well as for the legislative elections in 2021. But the CCP is also destroying
Hong Kong’s economy. Because Hong Kong is growing
closer to mainland China, and China’s economy isn’t doing so hot right now,
Moody’s recently downgraded Hong Kong’s credit rating.
It doesn’t help that foreign companies are also leaving Hong Kong in droves.
And the Hong Kong stock market, which is often seen as a proxy for China’s economy,
is now one of the worst-performing in the world. Now you may think that since Hong Kong was China’s
cash cow, it might consider giving Hong Kong back some of its autonomy.
Although, if you actually believe the CCP would give anyone more autonomy,
my response is to laugh maniacally until you sit
back down, then continue laughing like a super villain for another 36 minutes.
That’s not the CCP way. Instead, it’s just trying to convince the whole world
that the communist party is actually the “guardian of its democracy.”
And that Hong Kong should look *forward* to a Chinese future.
And if the CCP continues unopposed, I think we’ll all be enjoying a Chinese future.
The Marxist absolute materialistic worldview has
spread everywhere. I have a video I want to show you about that.
But first, it’s time to show love to the people who make this show possible,
the China Uncensored 50 Cent Army—
Fans who support the show on patreon.com/chinauncensored.
As my way of thanks, I answer their questions at the end of these episodes.
Today’s question comes from Gregory Zeigler “Hey, Chris, if the DPP wins this election,
do you think that it means war? I don't, because the CCP isn't prepared for it.
They threaten a lot, but will they really risk going to war with the United States?”
That’s a very important question. Taiwan will be holding its presidential
elections early 2024. And the DPP is the political party that wants
the least to do with Communist China. China, does not want their candidate,
William Lai to win.
However, as of this recording, it looks like he has the best chance to be Taiwan’s
next president. So will China invade if he wins? Doubtful. War is risky, and Xi does
not want to make a gamble he doesn’t know if he can win. First, they’ll see what Lai does.
But remember, for Xi Jinping to invade Taiwan,
he would need to create a joint command of the Chinese military. Whoever is in charge would
instantly become the most powerful man in China and be capable of staging a coup against Xi.
That’s why I think Xi would much rather have the threat of war get him what he wants,
rather than launching a war and actually having to deal with the consequences.
Thanks for your question and your support Gregory!
And now, Is God dead? That’s what a Communist atheist would tell you. And something YouTube
would consider too controversial to talk about. That’s why I’ve hidden that in gaming content
on my new show Deep Thoughts While Gaming. Check it out and let me know what you think.
And if you can spare a few dollars, we’d appreciate you hitting that
orange button to support us on Patreon. Once again, I’m Chris Chappell. See you next time.