About 7,000 Hong Kongs have fled to the UK since China imposed a national security law on Hong Kong and the British government expects more than 300,000 to obtain extended residence rights over the next five years, by AP.
Why it’s important: The announcement comes when the UK opened the new visa plan on Sunday, a day after China said it would no longer recognize Hong Kong’s national overseas British passports (BNOs) as valid travel documents or as proof of identity.
Driving the news: The UK government announced last July when the security law passed the new path to British citizenship for Hong Kongers who meet the requirements to obtain BNO status, which was granted to those living in the city. before the British government returned its former colony to China in 1997.
- According to the offer, these Hong Kongers and their dependents have the right to remain in the UK for five years, during which they can work or study.
- They would then be allowed to apply for an “established status” and, after another year, citizenship, notes Axios Dave Lawler.
The big picture: Some Hong Kongers told the AP that they were leaving because they are concerned that they will be punished for supporting the pro-democracy protest movement, which has seen several prominent figures arrested or imprisoned in recent months.
- “Many others” said China’s erosion by the high degree of autonomy they previously enjoyed had become “unbearable” and they want their children to have a better future.
- “Most say they never plan to return,” AP notes.