19 September 2024 (Washington D.C.) – Yesterday, the Committee for Freedom in Hong Kong (CFHK) Foundation participated in a bipartisan event hosted by U.S. Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD), Chair of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. The event, “Honoring Jimmy Lai: A Stand for Democracy and Free Speech in Hong Kong,” called for the immediate and unconditional release of Jimmy Lai, the Hong Kong 47, and all political prisoners in Hong Kong.
CFHK Foundation President Mark Clifford served as the moderator of the event with the participation of strong leaders for freedom and human rights in Hong Kong including Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), Senator Jim Risch (R-ID), Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Rep. Chris Smith (R-NJ), Rep. Jim McGovern (D-MA), Rep. Young Kim (R-CA), along with former Ambassador and CFHK Board Chairman James Cunningham and U.S. State Department Assistant Secretaries Daniel Kritenbrink and Dr. Daphna Rand.
Senator Ben Cardin said: "We will continue to point out what China and Hong Kong are doing is contrary to international human rights laws and contrary to their own commitments they gave on Hong Kong. We’re with you and we’re going to stay with you. And we’re going to make it clear that we will not rest until Jimmy Lai and others are released.”
Sebastien Lai, the son of Jimmy Lai, provided powerful and moving testimony in support of his father. In his speech he said: “[Jimmy Lai's] newspaper, the Apple Daily, held power to account in Hong Kong for 26 years until it was forced to shut down. [Apple Daily] championed the press freedoms my dad knew protected all other liberties. My dad sacrificed his own freedom to stay and act as a lightning rod; in doing so he has now taken on the full wrath of an authoritarian regime.”
Anna Kwok, Executive Director of the Hong Kong Democracy Council (HKDC), and Jodie Ginsberg, Chef Executive Officer of the Committee to Protect Journalists, provided testimony in support of Jimmy Lai and all political prisoners in Hong Kong, along with compelling remarks about the importance of protecting press freedom.
Several Hong Kong activists from around the world, including CFHK Foundation Policy and Advocacy Coordinator Frances Hui, provided video testimony for the event, which can be watched in its entirety here.
CFHK Foundation President Mark Clifford said:
“Thank you to the Members of Congress who came together in a strong bipartisan way to support the importance of freedom of the press and the release of Jimmy Lai and all political prisoners in Hong Kong. It is essential that the people of the United States and around the world speak out for the people of Hong Kong, who are no longer able to speak out for themselves.”
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