2nd accomplice witness begins testifying in Lai trial
Apple Daily founder Jimmy Lai began assuming a more prominent role in social movements after Occupy Central in 2014, a former senior employee told his national security trial on Friday. The court heard Chan Pui-man joined Apple Daily as a senior reporter in December 1996, before rising up the ranks to become associate publisher. Chan, as an accomplice witness, said on her first day of testimony that Lai had a “very clear value orientation” when she was working as a senior reporter.  “He supported Hong Kong’s democratic development and respected values such as freedom and human rights,” she said. “He also focused on whether the market could support Apple Daily, such as whether entertainment news could attract readers.”  At the time, the now-defunct newspaper not only focused on the entertainment aspect of news but also on exposing scandals, Chan said. The court was also told that the 2014 Occupy Central movement, as well as the defendant’s involvement, became a focus in meetings of middle- to higher-ranking staff. “Maybe because everyone [in the meetings] were journalists, so when [Lai] became part of the news, we would all like to ask about him,” Chan said. “Among us staff, we felt that he had become more involved in social movements.”  Chan’s testimony began after the prosecution wrapped up re-examining her former colleague and another accomplice witness, Cheung Kim-hung.  Cheung and Chan are among six senior staff who pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit collusion.  Earlier in the day, Cheung testified that Lai had become less explicit in calling outright for sanctions and focused instead on the effect of such actions after the promulgation of the national security law in 2020. The Apple Daily founder has denied three conspiracy charges relating to collusion with foreign forces and sedition. The trial resumes on Monday.