Hong Kong pro-democracy media tycoon Jimmy Lai has told his staff to "stand tall" in a handwritten letter from prison where he is being held pending trial under a new national security law.

Lai, the owner of pro-democracy newspaper Apple Daily, is the highest-profile figure detained under the sweeping new law which Beijing imposed on the restless city last year to snuff out dissent.

On Monday, Apple Daily posted a letter they said Lai wrote to his staff by hand.

"Hong Kong's situation is increasingly chilling, but precisely because of that, we need to love and cherish ourselves more," Lai wrote.

"The era is falling apart before us and it is time for us to stand tall and keep our heads high," he added.

It is the first time the public have heard from the 73-year-old since he was detained in late December.

His laywers tried to obtain bail for their famously outspoken client, including agreeing to house arrest, no media interviews and no social media posts.

But the courts ultimately denied that request because the security law removes the presumption of bail for national security crimes and Lai was deemed a continued potential threat.

In the letter to his journalist staff, Lai said defending free speech was "a dangerous job now".

"Please be extra cautious and do not take risks. Your safety is important," he wrote.

But he called on reporters to continue doing their job.

"As long as we are not blinded by unjust temptations, as long as we do not let the evil get its way through us, we are fulfilling our responbility," he wrote.

He described his life in prison as peaceful and said he spent time reading books, praying and doing exercise.

Lai is accused of "colluding with foreign forces" -- one of the new security crimes -- for allegedly calling for sanctions against Hong Kong and China.

The security law has been the spear tip of a multi-pronged crackdown over the last year, criminalising any act considered subversion, secession, terrorism or collusion with foreign forces.

It has radically transformed Hong Kong's relationship with the authoritarian mainland and outlawed much dissent in the once free-wheeling finance hub.

Critics, including many Western powers, have accused China of effectively outlawing opposition politics and shredding the freedoms and autonomy it promised Hong Kong could maintain ahead of the territory's handover from the British in 1997.

China has defended its crackdown, saying it must restore stability after 2019's protests, and ensure only "staunch patriots" are allowed to run the city.

Since the law was enacted in June, more than 100 pro-demcoracy activists have been arrested.

Most of those charged have been denied bail.

Gang ransacks Hong Kong newspaper critical of China
Hong Kong (AFP) April 12, 2021 - A Hong Kong newspaper that is critical of Beijing said Monday its printing presses were ransacked by a gang of men wielding sledgehammers.

The assault on the Epoch Times was captured on CCTV and comes as China overseas a sweeping crackdown against critics in Hong Kong following huge and often violent democracy protests in 2019.

Footage released by the paper showed four masked men storming into the printing plant in the early hours of Monday morning and smashing up equipment.

They are seen throwing concrete rubble into machinery as a terrified female staff member looked on, and in an accompanying report the Epoch Times said the gang threatened those inside with violence.

"The whole process of violent criminal damage was very short, it was completed in around two minutes," the paper wrote, adding the main printing console suffered the most damage.

Hong Kong Police confirmed its organised crime unit had taken over the case and that no arrests had been made so far.

The Epoch Times is linked to the Falun Gong, a spiritual movement that is banned in mainland China and prosecuted by authorities there.

The paper is printed in eight languages and publishes in 21 languages online, often penning scathing pieces about China's government.

The media group became a staunch supporter of former US president Donald Trump.

While it is banned in China, the Falun Gong maintains a presence in semi-autonomous Hong Kong and practitioners give the Epoch Times out at street booths across the city.

In a statement, the Epoch Times said some of its booths had also suffered "harassment and vandalism" in recent days by unidentified assailants.

It said its printing plant was previously vandalised in November 2019, at the height of the pro-democracy protests that swept Hong Kong that year.

"The Epoch Times Group condemns the attack and condemns the evil Chinese Communist force for damaging freedom and rule of law," the paper said in its statement.

Violent attacks on the media in Hong Kong are rare but not unheard of.

The city remains a major Asian media hub with a vibrant local press and many international outlets hosting regional headquarters.

But it has slid down media freedom rankings in recent years as Beijing seeks to assert more control over the city's restless population.

Pressure on the media has intensified in the aftermath of 2019's democracy protests with wielding a new national security law to curb dissent and authorities pushing a campaign to ensure only "staunch patriots" run the city.

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