Jimmy Lai receives DW Freedom of Speech Award 2026
Deutsche Welle (DW) has honoured the imprisoned Hong Kong publisher Jimmy Lai for his steadfast commitment to press freedom and democracy.
Bonn (DW/dpa/d.de) – German international broadcaster Deutsche Welle (DW) has presented its 12th DW Freedom of Speech Award to Hong Kong media entrepreneur Jimmy Lai, who has been imprisoned since 2020. His daughter Claire Lai accepted the award on his behalf.
“Jimmy Lai has stood unwaveringly for press freedom in Hong Kong at great personal risk, even as the space for independent journalism continued to shrink. Through Apple Daily, he provided journalists with a platform for free reporting and gave Hong Kong's pro-democracy movement a voice,” said DW Director General Barbara Massing.
Jimmy Lai was born in southern China in 1947 and fled to Hong Kong as a child in 1960. He founded the pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily in 1995. In the years that followed, Lai, who is a British citizen, became one of Hong Kong's most prominent advocates of democracy, providing financial support to pro-democracy parties and appearing publicly during the mass protests in Hong Kong in 2019 and 2020.
Following the introduction of China's national security law for Hong Kong in June 2020, Lai was arrested and has been held in solitary confinement since December 2020. Despite his British citizenship, the Hong Kong authorities continue to deny the United Kingdom consular access to him.
Earlier this year, a Hong Kong court sentenced Jimmy Lai to 20 years' imprisonment after convicting him of “conspiracy to collude with foreign forces” and conspiracy to publish “seditious material”.
The German magazine publishers’ association previously honoured Lai with its Press Freedom Award in May. The award ceremony was held under the patronage of the President of the Bundestag, Julia Klöckner.
