Jimmy Lai's Trial Finally Begins

Lai has been remanded in custody for more than 1,100 days

All eyes are on West Kowloon Law Courts today as media tycoon Jimmy Lai Chee-ying's national security law case is finally underway after numerous postponements.

Many people came out to witness the court case, Lai's wife Teresa arrived along with one of their sons; retired Catholic leader Joseph Zen, and pro-democracy politician Emily Lau Wai-hing. 

Grandma Wong being escorted by police

Members of the public were also keen to watch the proceedings first hand. A 29-year-old who gave her name as JC was first in line, having braved the chilly weather in front of the court since 10pm the night before, while the second person in line, a man surnamed Sung arrived at 4am.

Staff from the consulates of New Zealand, Australia, Switzerland, Canada and the United Kingdom were on hand to observe the proceedings as well.

Some people were shocked to see Secretary for Security Chris Tang Ping-keung had 1,000 police officers around the court house to prevent any disruption. But the case has been so heavily advertised that the government wants to have a massive show of force for such a high-profile case. 

Grandma Wong was in front of the court house with her UK flag screaming, "Support Jimmy Lai! Support Apple Daily!" The police tried to move her across the street in a bid to remove her as a distraction, but the media followed.

Already the defense has launched the argument that the sedition charge against Lai should be dismissed as it was laid after the permitted prosecution time frame. Senior Counsel Robert Pang Yiu-hung argued the sedition charge was under a colonial-era law, and not the national security law. 

Members of the public were keen to watch trial

Pang said the prosecution had passed the time limit for charging Lai, as the colonial-era sedition law states charges must be laid within six months of the alleged offense, which in this case would be from April 1, 2019 to June 24, 2021.

As a result this issue must be resolved before the case can continue. Three judges appointed by the chief executive are presiding over the case: Madam Justices Esther Toh Lye-ping, Susana D'Alamada Remedios, and Mr Justice Alex Lee Wan-tung.

Meanwhile in the last few weeks, Lai's son Sebastien has been rallying politicians, in particular Foreign Secretary David Cameron, lobbying them to push for his father's release, as he is a British citizen.