Pope Leo says he 'can't comment' on 20-year sentence of Hong Kong pro-democracy activist Jimmy Lai

Pope Leo XIV this week said he "can’t" comment on the 20-year sentence imposed on a democracy activist in Hong Kong. 

"I can’t comment," the American-born Leo told EWTN News, which covers Catholic news globally, while speaking to reporters in Italy. 

"Let’s pray for less hatred and more peace and work for authentic dialogue. God bless you all." 

Hong Kong publisher and democracy activist Jimmy Lai, who is a converted Catholic, was sentenced to 20 years by Beijing last month for violating its 2020 national security law, which U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio called "unjust and tragic."

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"The conviction shows the world that Beijing will go to extraordinary lengths to silence those who advocate fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong," Rubio said in a statement. "The United States urges the authorities to grant Mr. Lai humanitarian parole."

The 78-year-old founded the now-closed Hong Kong-based Apple Daily in 1995, while the island was still under British rule. 

Lai’s sentence closed one of the country’s most consequential national security cases since Beijing imposed the sweeping new law in 2020 after months-long anti-Chinese Communist Party protests in 2019, which were sparked by fears Beijing was eroding Hong Kong’s promised autonomy. 

They were followed by a sweeping security crackdown that criminalized dissent and reshaped the city’s legal system.

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Lai was arrested several times during the 2019 protests, and he was detained at his home in 2020. His newspaper was also raided at the time and closed. 

He was found guilty in December of attempting to undermine national security. 

President Donald Trump said in December he had personally urged Chinese President Xi Jinping to release Lai. 

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"I spoke to President Xi about it, and I asked to consider his release," Trump said. "He’s not well. He’s an older man, and he’s not well, so I did put that request out. We’ll see what happens."