Father Not Present in Washington: Sebastien Lai Brings Jimmy Lai's Imprisonment to Congressional Hearing

Father Not Present in Washington: Sebastien Lai Brings Jimmy Lai's Imprisonment to Congressional Hearing

Introduction: On September 17, the U.S. Congressional-Executive Commission on China held a hearing on the case of Jimmy Lai. Jimmy Lai's son, Sebastien Lai, once again spoke out for his father, who is in prison, in Washington. This article observes how a judicial case becomes a long-standing family and diplomatic issue from the perspective of family members speaking on behalf of those imprisoned across national borders.

Article: At the hearing in Washington, Sebastien Lai stood before the microphone, nameplate, and congressmen; his father's position could only be expressed through his words.

On September 17, the U.S. Congressional-Executive Commission on China held a hearing on the case of Jimmy Lai. Sebastien once again spoke as a son about the founder of Apple Daily, not as an abstract symbol of a Hong Kong national security case, but as a father who has been in prison for many years and cannot normally meet with his family.

This scene of "speaking on behalf of his father" has been ongoing for a long time. Sebastien has been traveling to the United States, the United Kingdom, Geneva, and other places over the past few years, repeating the same explanation in parliaments, media, and human rights activities: why Jimmy Lai was detained and why his family is worried that time is running out.

In February this year, the Hong Kong court sentenced Jimmy Lai to 20 years in prison after he was found guilty of two counts of conspiring to collude with foreign forces and one count of conspiring to publish seditious publications. The Hong Kong government stated that the case was handled in accordance with the law, emphasizing that the charges were aimed at behaviors that endangered national security, not journalistic work; Jimmy Lai's family, international news freedom organizations, and some foreign governments have continuously criticized the case for its impact on press freedom and political expression.

This has made Sebastien play a special role in Washington: the judicial procedure of the case took place in Hong Kong, but the narrative about his father's physical condition, family separation, and international negotiations is increasingly being completed by his children who are overseas.

He had previously stated in an interview that he was most worried about his father's health, as his father is elderly and long-term imprisonment has made the family worried about his health. The hearing on September 17 again brought this private anxiety into the public political space: a family hoping for their father to return home, while U.S. congressmen discussed Hong Kong's national security system, press freedom, and what actions the U.S. government could take.

Two languages coexisted in the same hearing room.

For the Hong Kong government, Jimmy Lai is a defendant who has been convicted by the court. The government has repeatedly countered criticism from foreign politicians and organizations, stating that the judiciary is independent and that the outside world should not interfere with Hong Kong's judicial procedures.

For Sebastien, the case is first calculated by time: how many years his father has lost his freedom, and how many opportunities the family has left to be with him. His constant appearance on the international stage has also formed a contrast

• Jimmy Lai used to operate media and directly participate in public discussions, but now the public expression about him largely comes from lawyers, family members, government statements, and supporting organizations.

This is also why the hearing on September 17 was different from general discussions on Hong Kong policy. The center of the hearing was not a re-listing of all the articles of the Hong Kong National Security Law, but a re-translation of a judicial result that has already produced a sentence into daily life: cannot eat together, cannot meet freely, and cannot determine how much time is left for the next meeting.

The Jimmy Lai case also has another set of clear legal facts. The court has made a conviction and sentencing; the Hong Kong government believes that the national security law maintains national security and social stability, and denies that the case targets press freedom. On the other hand, the United States, the United Kingdom, and news freedom and human rights organizations have long called for the release of Jimmy Lai and expressed concerns about his health, detention conditions, and the impact of the case on Hong Kong's media environment. The conflict between these positions will not disappear due to a hearing.

But Sebastien's appearance has changed the way the conflict is seen.

In the verdict, Jimmy Lai appears as the defendant; in the Hong Kong government's statements, he belongs to a national security case; in the history of Apple Daily, he is the founder; and at the hearing in Washington on September 17, he is first and foremost a father who is not present.

What Sebastien can do is to constantly bring this absence to different cities.

He attends events on behalf of his father, holds his father's photos, answers reporters' questions about his health and imprisonment, and asks government officials and congressmen to intervene. Whether these lobbying efforts can ultimately change the decisions of the Hong Kong side, they have become another line of development in the Jimmy Lai case outside of the judicial procedure: a prisoner who cannot freely cross national borders, and his family members cross national borders on his behalf.

On September 17, Washington heard not Jimmy Lai himself.

It is this absence that constitutes the most concrete fact of this hearing.