China beating up on 76 year old Hong Kong activist Jimmy Lai

 

from PEN Canada member email today #FreeJimmyLai His trial resumes tomorrow in Hong Kong. Jimmy Lai, a journalist, writer, media publisher, and pro-democracy activist, has been in solitary confinement since December 2020.   PEN believes that Lai’s ongoing detention is emblematic of the devastating impact the 2020 National Security Law (NSL) has had on freedom of expression across Hong Kong. His case is illustrative of the government’s willingness to use the legal system to silence dissent. Tomorrow his trial resumes. The charges he faces—including two under the NSL—could result in life imprisonment.  Madeleine Thien writes to Jimmy Lai Madeleine Thien is the author of four books, most recently Do Not Say We Have Nothing, which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize, the Women’s Prize for Fiction and the Folio Prize, and won the Governor-General’s Literary Award for Fiction, among other honours. For PEN's Day of the Imprisoned Writer campaign, she wrote a letter to Lai. It reads in part:    "You became what the government called, with all the force of its contempt and violence, a troublemaker. We both know that, in China, as in many other places today, a troublemaker must be publicly shamed and paraded so that others will choose silence; so that others will, out of fear, relinquish the moral world within themselves. This moral life is their only true possession, for it is their character, their selfhood, and their legacy; to lose it is to denude oneself."   HER FULL LETTER TO LAI Write your own letter Take action for these four imprisoned writers. A letter of solidarity encourages their spirit, reconnects them with the outside world, and is often long-remembered after release.  PEN will send the letter on your behalf. You have until November 29 to write alongside us. Take inspiration from these letters from renowned authors and PEN members:  Margaret Atwood to Jimmy Lai Viv Groskop to Alaa Abd el-Fattah Gioconda Belli to Jose Rubén Zamora Marroquín Elif Shafak to Kaciaryna Andrejeva SUBMIT YOUR LETTER HERE Join the call to #FreeJimmyLai Time is not on our side: Lai is 76 years old, in solitary confinement, diabetic, and will face trial tomorrow.  Spread the word on socials (Instagram, Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn) using the hashtag #FreeJimmyLai alongside this image:  NEW: UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention finds Jimmy Lai is unlawfully and arbitrarily detained and calls for his immediate release Last week, the UNWGAD concluded, in relation to all of the cases Mr. Lai has faced since August 2020, and continues to face, Mr. Lai’s detention is unlawful and arbitrary.   Accordingly, the Working Group calls on the Hong Kong government to: immediately release Mr. Lai; take steps to remedy Mr. Lai’s situation without delay; accord Mr. Lai an enforceable right to compensation and other reparations; and conduct a full and independent investigation into Mr. Lai’s arbitrary and unlawful detention and take appropriate measures against those responsible for the violation of his rights. MORE ON THE FINDING ICYMI: Son of imprisoned Jimmy Lai pleads with Canada to put pressure on Hong Kong to show mercy STORY IN NATIONAL POST SUPPORT PEN JOIN PEN Copyright © 2024 PEN Canada, All rights reserved. You are receiving this email because you signed up for the PEN Canada mailing list and/or are a member of PEN Canada. Thank you! Our mailing address is: PEN Canada 401 Richmond St W Suite 244 Toronto, ON M5V 3A8 Canada Add us to your address book Want to change how you receive these emails? You can update your preferences or unsubscribe from this list