HONG KONG -- The Hong Kong Special Administrative Region government on Thursday filed an application with the Court of First Instance for forfeiture of the offense-related properties of Jimmy Lai in order to achieve the important objectives of preventing and suppressing acts and activities endangering national security.

The application was made in accordance with the Law of the People's Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the HKSAR and the Implementation Rules for Article 43 of the Law of the People's Republic of China on Safeguarding National Security in the HKSAR.

The Court of First Instance of the High Court earlier convicted Lai of three charges of offenses endangering national security.

The court pointed out that Lai was the mastermind and driving force behind the case, consciously using the now-defunct Apple Daily and his personal influence to carry out a consistent campaign with a view to undermining the legitimacy or authority of the central government, the HKSAR government and their institutions, and harming the relations between the central government and the HKSAR government with the people in Hong Kong, which went far beyond what should be permissible under the law; and that he repeatedly colluded with foreign forces to beg for sanctions and engaged in hostile activities against the central government and the HKSAR government. The court sentenced Lai to 20 years' imprisonment in the end.

According to Article 32 of the national security law in Hong Kong, "proceeds obtained from the commission of an offense under this Law, including financial aid, gains and rewards, and funds and tools used or intended to be used in the commission of the offense, shall be seized and confiscated."

The application for and issuance of a forfeiture order must comply with the strict conditions set out in Schedule 3 to the Implementation Rules. The Court of First Instance may order the forfeiture only if it is satisfied, after an application is made by the secretary for justice, that the property to be forfeited meets relevant conditions, according to Article 32 of the law.

A spokesperson for the HKSAR government stated that the HKSAR is a society underpinned by the rule of law and has always adhered to the principle that laws must be obeyed and lawbreakers be held accountable. Amongst others, applying to the court for a forfeiture order is one of the effective means to combat serious crimes and protect the public interest, and laws and mechanisms for forfeiture of offense-related properties are commonly found around the world.

A forfeiture order made for the purpose of safeguarding national security can prevent persons convicted of offenses endangering national security, their accomplices or agents from continuing to use their offense-related properties to engage in acts and activities endangering national security, so as to cut off the funding chains for offenses endangering national security and to weaken their capacity to commit offenses endangering national security, the spokesperson said.