Jimmy Lai urges launch of English Apple Daily to reach US readers, says ex-publisher

Apple Daily's former publisher testified on Thursday that Next Media founder Jimmy Lai Chee-Ying has been actively planning the launch of the English page of the newspaper to attract readers in the United States and get a "political lever" to reach the US.

Cheung Kim-hung continued to testify as the prosecution's first accomplice witness on the 12th day of Lai's trial. He said Lai has been actively planning and pressing for the launch of the English version of Apple Daily since May 2020.

Lai hoped the English page could attract US readers and they could serve as a "political lever" with the US, said Cheung. Lai also set up a chat group to instruct the targets and approach of the English Apple Daily. 

Cheung recalled Lai instructed the English team of the paper to cover anti-government, supported the sanctions and protests topics mainly but not to include any content that was "pro-China."

The prosecution also showed an extract of a WhatsApp conversation between Lai and Cheung back in March 2019, which included a photo of the meeting between former Chief Secretary for Administration Anson Chan Fang On-sang and the then Vice President of the US, Mike Pence.

Lai said the meeting would be a piece of significant news and instructed Cheung to "maximize" the coverage of the news.

The ex-publisher said Lai has launched a live-chat program to discuss the situation in Hong Kong with foreign politicians and scholars with the aim of influencing public opinion.

The online media program - Live Chat with Jimmy Lai - was launched in July 2020 and is available on various Apple Daily platforms. 

Cheung stated that Lai believed these interviews, conducted with influential figures, could shed light on the situation in Hong Kong following the implementation of the National Security Law. 

He noted that Lai aimed to highlight the NSL impact on the city's rule of law and its status as a global financial center while creating public sentiment urging foreign countries to offer assistance to Hong Kong.

Cheung said all guests were invited by Lai and his personal assistant, Mark Simon, without any involvement of Apple Daily staff.

(Update at 5.12 pm)