News Reporter

Thursday, 19 February 2026

Unjustly Imprisoned in China

Friend,

Secretary of State Marco Rubio's remarkable speech in Munich last Saturday highlighted the great goods a shared Christian history has given both the United States and Europe. In doing so, it also emphasized the sharp contrast between us and nations where such things as the freedom to speak without government retribution are non-existent.

Case in point: a native of China, named Jimmy Lai. About 65 years ago, at the age of 12, Lai stowed away on a Chinese ship bound for Hong Kong where he became a child laborer in a garment factory.

Smart, resourceful, and beginning as a floor-sweeper, he climbed through the ranks of the garment business, learning all there was to know about it. Then, in the 1970s, Lai leveraged everything he had and could borrow to start his own company. That risk led to the launch of a clothing brand and millionaire status for a man who truly started with nothing.

During China's notorious 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, Lai began using his public profile in Hong Kong to openly criticize the Chinese government. This began a new chapter in his life—journalist. Founding a media company as well as a popular pro-democracy newspaper, Lai gained recognition as an influential critic of China's Communist regime.

As such, Lai became a frequent regime target. His assets were frozen. He was arrested. He spent time in prison. All for his belief in democracy and a desire to see his people freed from Communist oppression.

But amid his struggles, something wonderful happened for Lai. Through the influence of his wife, he was baptized and received into the Catholic Church.

God be praised, Lai has his faith to sustain him, because his enemies continue to pile insult upon injury.

Already in custody on fraud charges deemed "spurious" by the U.S. State Department, Lai has now been sentenced to 20 years for violating China's 2020 National Security Law—a law that didn't even exist at the time of his alleged infractions.

Now 78 years old, Lai's family rightly considers 20 years a "death sentence."

Secretary Rubio calls Lai's sentence "an unjust and tragic conclusion to his case," adding, "It shows the world that Beijing will go to extraordinary lengths to silence those who advocate fundamental freedoms in Hong Kong." He also urges authorities to grant Lai humanitarian parole.

Indeed, Lai's sentence is nothing more than a vendetta on the part of a Communist government that cannot tolerate dissent.

And so, we grieve for a fellow Catholic suffering persecution for championing the freedom so important to Catholic social teaching. And we encourage Secretary Rubio and Vice President JD Vance, also fellow Catholics, to do everything in their power to win Lai's release.

Saint Maximilian Kolbe, patron of the imprisoned, and who suffered unjust imprisonment, please pray for Jimmy Lai and his family.

Go forward bravely,

Kelsey Reinhardt
President & CEO

CatholicVote

Breaking News: After WHO exit, Trump officials propose replacement that will cost U.S. about three times as much

Breaking News

Feb. 19, 11:04 a.m. EST

After WHO exit, Trump officials propose replacement that will cost U.S. about three times as much

The Department of Health and Human Services proposes spending $2 billion a year to recreate systems the U.S. accessed through the World Health Organization at a fraction of the cost, according to officials briefed on the matter.

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