Forbes magazine, which once infamously cited the “Death of Hong Kong” on its cover and later apologized for it, has again struck its poisonous pen into Hong Kong this time at its judiciary.
With the black hand of the Doughty Street Chambers in London, the “international legal team” for Jimmy Lai written all over it, the article likened Lai’s trial to “multiple Kafkaesque trials for fighting for freedom of speech and democracy in Hong Kong.” The author, Dr Ewelina U. Ochab was referring to the trial of Josef K., who was arrested and prosecuted by an incomprehensible legal system without ever knowing the charges against him, as depicted in a book by Franz Kafka, from Prague in the early 1920s.
This is an insult to Hong Kong’s judicial system. Hong Kong practices the common law system, similar to all British Commonwealth countries and the US. In fact, Hong Kong’s legal system is well regarded and in the 2024 World Justice Project Rule of Law Index, Hong Kong remained unchanged as it continued to rank sixth in the East Asia and Pacific region and came 23rd out of 142 countries and jurisdictions globally. The judges hearing the Lai trial were recommended by the Chief Justice as being the most experienced in handling national security laws. The legal system is comprehensible, and Jimmy Lai is fully aware of the charges made against him, which includes sedition and collusion with foreign forces.
Ochab made numerous reference to Lai being held in solitary confinement. If she had done her own homework and not rely on the word of the Doughty Street Chambers, she would know that Lai asked to be in solidarity and did not wish to mix with the other inmates. As a devout Catholic he attends mass every Sunday and receives holy communion. As for his health, yes, he is aging and is diabetic. But his local legal team told the court that he receives regular medical treatment and is provided with the necessary medications. The lawyers said they were satisfied with the treatment Lai receives while in custody.
She refers a survey by Doughty Street Chambers that was “chilling” to note that 12 prisoners who died during 2014 – 25 “closely match Mr Lai’s profile, being older, male diabetic prisoners. The most recent death of a diabetic prisoner was on June 28, 2025, of a man aged 74.” And that it was “deeply disturbing” to reveal a significant number of deaths of older prisoners and diabetic prisoners in circumstances where there “appears to have been a failure to identify a person’s deteriorating health condition in prison and a failure to transfer them to hospital in time for life-saving treatment.” This is a load of rubbish, again from the Doughty Street chambers. With a total prison population of 10,184 inmates, it is not surprising that some died of old age. It should also be noted that all penal institutions in Hong Kong have on-premises hospitals and are staffed by qualified healthcare personnel. In collaboration with Medical Officers from the Department of Health, round-the-clock basic health care services are provided in all institutions. Those in custody who need further treatment and investigations are referred to visiting medical specialists or public hospitals for follow-up.
This so-called survey appears to be unpublished but was given exclusively to Ochab for her article by Doughty Street chambers.
The public relations spin Doughty Street chambers has given to Jimmy Lai’s detention has proven effective with practically all western media having fallen for the “innocent” line to a man facing near treason charges. One can only imagine the tone of the coverage once the verdict is delivered.
And it continues. Only recently, Security Secretary Chris Tang wrote to The Economist condemning an article headlined “Jimmy Lai’s trial raises questions about how justice now works.” Similar letters were dispatched since the start of the trial to outlets including CNN, The Wall Street Journal and The Washington Post . Total fiction appeared in most of the reports. If they were published in Hong Kong, they could be charged with contempt of court as would be the case in any other country.
Mark Pinkstone
** 博客文章文責自負,不代表本公司立場 **
With local elections looming just around the corner in September and December, preparations are now taking place for candidates to declare their loyalty to Hong Kong to pass the registrar’s test for eligibility.
The elections have been dubbed the “patriots only elections” which has been mocked by the western media as a dubious requirement to keep any opposition out of local politics.
Western media mock the “Patriots only” elections, suggesting that Beijing is controlling the local elections by opposing any potential candidate who is contrary to its liking.
But this was refuted in 2021 when then Chief Executive Carrie Lam said that as long as the candidates can show allegiance to Hong Kong, uphold the Basic Law and pass national security checks, they will be permitted to run for election.
"For people who hold different political beliefs, who are more inclined towards more democracy, or who are more conservative, who belong to the left or belong to the right, as long as they meet this very fundamental and basic requirement, I don't see why they could not run for election," she said.
Every country has patriots, particularly on local and federal governments. A recent YouGov survey on globalization and national sentiments on how people in 19 countries view their own nation, placed the USA top of the list.
But the survey is wrong. The USA is no longer a patriot state, but one of nationalism which implies a sense of superiority and prioritizes one’s nation above all others. It is at the top of a hierarchy of nations. According to various definitions, nationalism looks down on other nations, is often aggressive or exclusive and can cause division or conflict. Patriotism, on the other hand, respects other nations, is positive and inclusive and builds harmony.
By these definitions, Hong Kong/China is definitely patriotic.
In the west, patriotism is taken for granted; it has been around for hundreds of years and is firmly embedded in local folklore. But for Hong Kong it is something relatively new, making it vulnerable to the influence of foreign forces hellbent on breaking its successful one country two systems of administration.
Prior to the 2021 elections, the US propaganda agency National Endowment for Democracy (NED) was firmly entrenched in Hong Kong with the sole objective of destroying the unique administration system. It was seen as China’s tool to reunite with Taiwan; if it works in Hong Kong, it can work anywhere. But the US plan is to use Taiwan as a base for its military arsenal on the doorstep of the mainland, as it has done in Japan and the Philippines. In the eyes of the US, the one country, two systems principle cannot succeed.
The NED instilled distrust of the administration with the universities, legislators, trade unions, vulnerable school children, weak-kneed activists, the media and others, culminating in the bloody riots of 2019. Action was needed. A legal framework was established with the national security laws which gave the police power to arrest suspects on charges closely aligned to traitors. Numerous trials are continuing, while the government maintains its vigilance to ensure non-patriots don’t infiltrate the election committee or the legislature to disrupt the smooth running of Hong Kong.
With change came enlargement of the Election Committee (EC) and the Legislative Council. The EC, Hong Kong’s electoral college similar to the US’s which elects its president, was established under the Basic Law to elect the Chief Executive of Hong Kong. It grew from 800 members in 1998 to 1500 members today. [The US electoral college has only 500 members to elect its president]. Among its members are members of the district fight crime and district fire safety committees, the true patriots of Hong Kong who not only love their territory but are also prepared to service it in a voluntary position. Other members of the EC include architects and planners, Chinese medical practitioners, universities and schools, engineers in their various fields, medical and health specialists, social welfare, sports, performing arts and publications, technology and innovation, religious bodies etc.
Many will be returned uncontested in the September 7 elections because they have already been chosen by their respective bodies. However, 28 candidates will compete for 21 seats from 6 contested sub-sectors including commercial, architectural, technology, labour, the representatives of the area committees of the district fight crime and fire safety committees of Hong Kong, Kowloon and the New Territories.
Then, at the end of the year, some 90 members will be voted in the Legislative Council Elections which will include 40 members from the election committee, 30 to be returned by functional constituencies and 20 by geographic constituencies. All are patriots who love Hong Kong for what it is, for what it has achieved, and with the full knowledge that together they made Hong Kong prosper to be the international city it is.
