Hong Kong hits out at US panel over Jimmy Lai hearing and sanctions bill

Hong Kong authorities have hit out at a US congressional commission for colluding with “anti-China politicians” to hold a hearing on jailed former media boss Jimmy Lai Chee-ying and introducing a bill to “intimidate” local national security officials with sanctions.

The government issued the condemnation on Thursday night after the US Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) held a hearing the previous day on Lai, founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper.

During the hearing, Lai’s son appealed for his father’s release. Lai’s national security case and prison conditions, as well as his 20-year sentence, press freedom and rule-of-law issues in Hong Kong were also discussed.

The heads of the CECC also introduced the Jimmy Lai Hong Kong Political Prisoner Accountability Act of 2026. The bipartisan bill seeks to establish a framework requiring the US State Department to investigate within 30 days any death of a “Hong Kong political prisoner” in custody linked to abuse, medical neglect or inhumane conditions.