Hong Kong court jails pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai for 20 years

BBC update

A HONG Kong court jailed pro-democracy tycoon Jimmy Lai for 20 years on Monday after he was found guilty of national security offences last December.

This is the harshest sentence to be given under the controversial national security law, which China says is necessary for the city's stability.

Lai, who is a British citizen, was one of the loudest critics of Beijing, often wielding his pro-democracy paper, Apple Daily, as a tool of protest.

Six former executives of the paper were also jailed on Monday - from six years and nine months to 10 years.

Hailed a hero by the pro-democracy movement, Lai is seen as a traitor by Beijing.

He has always denied the charges against him, saying he had advocated for what he believed were Hong Kong's values, such as the rule of law and free speech.