About 7,000 Hong Kongers have fled to the UK since China introduced a national security law to Hong Kong and the British government expects more than 300,000 per AP to obtain extended residence rights.
Why it matters: The announcement comes as the UK opens the new visa scheme on Sunday – a day after China said it would no longer recognize Hong Kong’s British passport (BNO) as valid travel documents or proof of identity.
Send the news: The British government announced in July last year when the security legislation would pave the way for British citizenship for Hong Kong eligible for BNO status, which was granted to those living in the city before the British government closed its former colony in 1997 back to China.
- Under the offer, these Hong Kongers and their dependents have the right to stay in the United Kingdom for five years, during which they can work or study.
- They would then be allowed to apply for ‘established status’ and, after an extra year, citizenship, says Axios Dave Lawler.
The whole picture: Some Hong Kongers have told the AP that they are leaving because they are worried that they will be punished for supporting the protest movement for democracy – which in recent months has seen several prominent people arrested or imprisoned.
- ‘Many others’ have said that China’s erosion of the high degree of autonomy they once enjoyed has become ‘unbearable’ and they want their children to have a better future.
- “Most say they have no intention of ever going back,” AP notes.