PLEASE be a ‘power for good’ to win mercy for my – Latest News
An open letter from Claire Lai, the daughter of Chinese political Jimmy Lai, to Eileen Gu, the American-born star of China’s Winter Olympics crew.
Dear Ms. Gu,
Congratulations in your historic, medal-winning efficiency on the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics.
I’m writing to you as a result of of your outspoken appreciation for the values which have formed you. You have continuously expressed how your American upbringing and schooling instilled in you a sense of objective and a dedication to utilizing your platform for good.
During these Games, you famous that you just characterize the best of the values you realized within the United States.
You have expressed your pleasure in these values, values I realized from my dad and mom and likewise maintain expensive.
It is within the spirit of these shared values — freedom of expression, compassion, and the sanctity of the person — that I ask for your help.
My father, Jimmy Lai, has spent his total life championing those self same beliefs.
He didn’t simply admire American values from afar; he understood them because the important bedrock of a flourishing society.
To him, the American spirit of liberty and the braveness to converse reality to energy weren’t simply political ideas, however ethical imperatives.
He risked the whole lot — his business, his freedom, and now his life — as a result of he believed that the freedoms loved within the West ought to be a common proper.
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His bravery has made him a function model for supporters of freedom and democracy all over the world.
On Feb. 9, on the age of 78, my father was sentenced to 20 years in jail in Hong Kong for championing these freedoms by the newspaper he based and printed.
Like you, he has deep ties to each the East and the West.
After more than 5 years in solitary confinement, his health is failing quickly. He is a diabetic with a coronary heart situation, and his remaining time is short.
I consider that you just — a celebrated member of the Chinese Olympic crew and somebody deeply revered within Chinese society — might be a catalyst for a humanitarian gesture by the Chinese authorities.
I appeal to your said need to be a “force for good.”
Please think about raising my father’s case with Chinese officers, urging them to enable an aged man who merely shared your appreciation for freedom to stay out his closing days in peace.
Thank you for contemplating this plea.
Sincerely,
Claire Lai
