China warns UK against offering citizenship to Hong Kong residents
Beijing … News Time
China has warned London to rectify the mistake immediately after Britain approved a plan to offer citizenship to Hong Kong’s population of about 3 million. According to the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC), the offer was made by the UK to Hong Kong citizens in July when China introduced a security law on the former British colony. It should be noted that China had introduced a security law in Hong Kong this year, which was criticized internationally and was called an attack on the freedom of citizens. China has previously warned Britain to refrain from interfering in China’s internal affairs and a fresh warning has been issued by the Chinese Foreign Ministry. According to the report, the UK offer is not for all Hong Kong citizens but only for those who hold a British National Overseas (BNO) passport. The UK offer is for Hong Kong citizens born before 1997 who were born before the region was handed over to China. The British Consul General in Hong Kong said that an estimated 300,000 people in Hong Kong hold BNO passports, while 2.9 million are eligible. The British government estimates that more than 1 million people could benefit from the offer of residence in the UK once new visas become available in January. Critics say the visa law will not protect Hong Kong Democrats, who were born after 1997 and are the first target of the security law. Earlier, British Home Secretary Priti Patel had said that Hong Kong BNO passport holders and those close to them would be able to apply for a special UK visa from January to leave the country. Holders of BNO passports can visit the UK for 6 months without a visa. The new decision by the British government will also allow these individuals to stay longer in the UK and possibly permanent citizenship.
British Foreign Secretary Dominic Robb had said that Hong Kong residents and their dependents with British citizenship abroad would be offered the right to work and study in the UK for five years. He added that there would be no quotas for people already living in the UK or holding citizenship. We will not relinquish our historic responsibilities and the passage of the National Security Act is very disappointing. He said China had not only rejected the joint declaration but also violated fundamental laws and international sovereignty for Hong Kong. “China has not fulfilled its promises to the people of Hong Kong through its national security laws, but we will keep our promises to them,” he said. It should be noted that the city was ceded to Britain by the British in 1991 and China is ruling here under the ‘one country, two systems’ framework and Hong Kong has semi-autonomy. In October last year, there were large-scale protests in Hong Kong against a proposed extradition law. It highlighted sharp differences between the democratically-minded people of Hong Kong and Beijing’s ruling Communist Party. The protests began peacefully in Hong Kong, but turned violent after a strong government response. The law allowing Hong Kong citizens to be sent to China for trial was withdrawn after strong protests. However, the protests continued for several months, including calls for voting for rights and an independent investigation into police violence.
