HONG KONG: Hong Kong's High Court on Monday (Dec 15) found pro-democracy campaigner Jimmy Lai guilty of conspiracy to collude with foreign forces and to publish seditious material under a China-imposed national security law that could see him jailed for life.

Senior party members previously alleged they had been told to disband or face severe consequences, including possible arrest.

These problems first took root as China prepared to assume control of Hong Kong from Britain, in 1997. Concerned that the transition would scare off foreign investors, Chinese leaders tried to woo real-estate tycoons and other business elites by giving them key roles overseeing the city’s future governance.