Foreign media outlets and advocacy groups, including France-based Reporters Without Borders (RSF), the UK’s Hong Kong Watch and figures described as Jimmy Lai Chee-ying’s “international legal team,” have come under fire from local politicians for what they call persistent attempts to fuel rumours of inhumane treatment in prison and to create misleading international narratives.

Lai, the founder of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper, faces two counts of colluding with foreign forces. His high-profile trial under the National Security Law began in December 2023 and concluded on August 28.

In August, RSF said it had joined a coalition of 72 human rights groups in urging British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to secure Lai’s release on medical grounds. The organisation alleged on its website that Lai, a British citizen, had been subjected to harsh solitary confinement.

A separate report released by the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong (CFHK) Foundation on September 8 claimed that prisoners in Hong Kong were denied proper medical care.

Lai’s Hong Kong legal team has repeatedly disputed these allegations. Senior Counsel Robert Pang Yiu-hung, representing Lai, confirmed on August 15 that Lai receives daily health checks from medical personnel arranged by the Correctional Services Department (CSD), including routine blood pressure and pulse monitoring, and has filed no complaints about the CSD’s medical arrangements.

Government statements also said Lai is certified fit for court hearings by doctors before each appearance. Regarding reports of heart palpitations, a Hospital Authority specialist conducted a detailed examination on August 7 and found no abnormalities. Another examination was arranged on August 13, after which Lai followed advice to wear a cardiac monitoring device.

Robertsons Solicitors, the Hong Kong firm representing Lai, has also clarified that he receives appropriate treatment for chronic conditions, including diabetes. While he cannot see the sky directly from his cell, he has access to natural light through corridor windows and is allowed one hour of daily exercise in a designated area, the legal team said.

The authorities stressed that Lai’s separation from other inmates was made at his own request and approved by the CSD “after considering all relevant factors in accordance with the law.” They described as “completely fact-twisting” what they called unfounded remarks by Lai’s so-called international legal team and other “anti-China forces” about his solitary confinement.

In early 2023, Robertsons Solicitors issued a statement saying it “exclusively acts for” Lai in his Hong Kong cases and denied any connection with an “international legal team.” “Mr Lai has never instructed anyone apart from his legal team in Hong Kong to act on his behalf in relation to his criminal and related proceedings,” the firm said.

Claims have also circulated that Lai’s trial has been deliberately prolonged, leading to extended detention. However, Lai’s current imprisonment stems primarily from a separate fraud conviction, for which he was sentenced to five years and nine months in December 2023.