The Faith and Witness of Jimmy Lai

Jimmy Lai’s trial on national-security charges began Monday in Hong Kong under a heavy police presence. You’d think he was the leader of Hamas rather than a former newspaper owner. But in the three years that he’s spent waiting for his day in court, the trial has become something the authorities never anticipated: a global stage for Jimmy’s witness for freedom. This witness includes his stand for free speech, as he watched an alleged world finance center seize his publication, Apple Daily, without a court order or judgment. It includes his role as a champion for the economic liberty that turned Hong Kong into the most prosperous Chinese society the world has known. And it includes his argument that Hong Kong’s people are as worthy of democracy as any.