A bipartisan group of more than 30 U.S. senators — led by Ashley Moody and Rick Scott — sent a public letter to President Donald Trump urging him to press Chinese President Xi Jinping for the release of Hong Kong democracy activist Jimmy Lai during their upcoming meeting. The senators noted that Lai has spent nearly five years in solitary confinement and warned that “Mr. Lai’s trial under Hong Kong’s National Security Law is coming to an end, but time is not on his side—he must be released immediately,” according to the Office of the Senator.
The letter also referenced Lai’s deteriorating health at age 78 and said he is prepared to leave public life and depart Hong Kong if freed. The lawmakers wrote that “The humanitarian case for Mr. Lai’s release is stronger and more dire than ever, which is why this must be addressed at the highest possible level,” as reported by the Office of the Senator.
A group of U.S. senators sent a letter through the Office of the Senator to former President Trump stating that if Jimmy Lai remains imprisoned or dies in custody “he would become a martyr; a powerful and enduring symbol of opposition.” They wrote that “should you, as the leader of the free world, raise Jimmy Lai’s case, President Xi will understand the importance of releasing Jimmy Lai now, before it is too late.” The full letter is available on the Office of the Senator’s official website.
