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Congressman Asks Trump to Press China to Release Prisoners

President Donald Trump and Chinese leader Xi Jinping (Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP/Getty Images)

George Caldwell / @GCaldwell_news

George Caldwell is a correspondent for The Daily Signal. Send an email to George.

Ahead of President Donald Trump’s next meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping, a Republican congressman is leaning on the president to fight for the liberation of prisoners in China.

Rep. John Moolenaar, R-Mich., held an event on Thursday at the U.S. Capitol with the daughters of two figures being held prisoner in China: Hong Kong businessman Jimmy Lai and Pastor Ezra Jin.

Moolenaar, who chairs the House Select Committee on China, announced he had “sent a letter to President Trump about all the prisoners of conscience China is holding.”

He said of China’s prisoners, “These courageous people are persecuted for their religious beliefs, or political opinion, or other activism that the [Chinese Communist Party] opposes, and I’m urging the president to [press] for the release of prisoners of conscience held captive by the CCP in any future meeting with Xi Jinping.”

At the event, Grace Drexel, the daughter of Ezra Jin, and Claire Lai, the daughter of Jimmy Lai, spoke of their fathers’ imprisonment.

Ezra Jin, the pastor of Zion Church, was detained in November 2025. He is one of 18 members of the church who are currently imprisoned, his daughter said.

“They are all being held under their charge of illegal use of information networks,” said Drexel.

“Really what they are in prison for is because my father’s church wanted to be able to make the sacred decisions … like who becomes a pastor, what they can preach on, what kind of small groups they can host, how many people can be baptized, whether or not kids can come into the services.”

She added, “I just want him to be back with us in the U.S. as soon as possible.”

Claire Lai similarly called for the release of her father, “who wishes only to spend his remaining days serving our Lord and with his family.”

Jimmy Lai is a Hong Kong businessman who founded the anti-communist newspaper Apple Daily.

According to his daughter, he “had his political awakening in the aftermath of the Tiananmen Square massacre in 1989 and entered the Catholic Church the year of Hong Kong’s handover to China in 1997.”

The democratic activist was arrested in 2020. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison in February 2026 for allegedly seeking to undermine national security with his publications and remains in solitary confinement, his daughter told reporters. He is 78 years old.

The House’s China committee was formed in 2023 and focuses on America’s economic and military competition with the nation, as well as issues of human rights in China. 

Moolenaar told The Daily Signal that much of the committee’s work involves public pressure, and the upcoming Sino-American summit provides a valuable chance for its members to apply pressure through Trump.

“With a future summit occurring, there’s a real opportunity to raise these issues,” said Moolenaar. “Quite frankly, I think one of our main roles for the committee is to highlight and put a spotlight on what’s occurring here.”

The meeting between Trump and Xi, originally scheduled for April 1, has been delayed at Trump’s request amid the war with Iran.

Lai, who was a guest of Speaker of the House Mike Johnson, R-La., and Rep. Chris Smith, R-N.J. at Trump’s State of the Union address, says she is grateful for statements from administration officials in support of her father.

“Secretary of State [Marco] Rubio has tweeted calling for my father’s humanitarian release, and we are so extremely grateful for that,” she said. 

“President Trump himself has mentioned my father a number of times, and he has shown … a commitment for the release of my father. We are just extremely grateful for the support, and we hope that our father will be released soon,” Lai added.

The Chinese Embassy to the United States did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

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