Translated material
Visa war
Relations between Great Britain and China are aggravated due to attempts by the United Kingdom to facilitate the immigration of the inhabitants of Hong Kong
Almost three million inhabitants of Hong Kong will receive the right to live and work in the UK for five years, and over time will be able to obtain citizenship of this country. This is from the British government a serious gesture to support the inhabitants of the former colony in the context of increasing China control over a formally semi -autonomous territory.
The United Kingdom believes that by Beijing on June 30 of this year, the extremely strict “national security law” of Hong Kong “clearly and rudely” violates the combined Chinese-British joint declaration of 1984 by Hong Kong, based on the principle of “one country-two systems”, formulated by Chinese leader Deng Xiaopin. A lot of effort was made that the international community and the UN support this declaration.
This week, the head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the United Kingdom said that since January next year, Great Britain simplifies the visa procedure for Hong Kong with the status of a “British citizen abroad”. If earlier owners of BNO passports (British National Overseas - “British citizen abroad”), of which 350 thousand today could be in the UK without a visa for six months, now this period will be increased to five years.
Having spent a total of six years in the United Kingdom (after receiving a permanent residence permit), these Hong Kong will be able to submit a request for citizenship.
Their closest relatives (about 2.5 million) can now apply for the same status.
BNO status was developed in the 60s, when the Britain authorities changed the migration regime and created a system of various passports for overseas territories, and in particular for Hong Kong.
BBC claims that the authorities were not too generous with the inhabitants of their former colonies. Such a passport formally provided the owner of British citizenship, but in fact he had no more rights than an ordinary tourist: it was possible to come to the kingdom no more than six months and could not work. The status of BNO was received by the residents of Hong Kong, who submitted the application until July 1, 1997, when the British government officially transferred the former British territory of China.
The next day after the news of the new English hospitality, Chinese senior officials announced that China, which does not recognize double citizenship, “may not recognize” the BNO passport. Beijing believes that Britain does not have the right to massively provide a residence permit of the Hong Kong, and the announced plans for a simplified visa system are “violation of international law and basic norms of international relations, as well as interference in the affairs of Hong Kong and the domestic policy of the PRC.”
In an interview with the popular ITV television channel, the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Great Britain Dominic Raab admitted that the kingdom can do little to “coercive” China if he tries to block the arrival of Hong Kong to the kingdom.
The announcement of the special visa regime for Hong Kong was followed the day after the US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who met in London with Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Minister Raab, followed to the UK. Pompeo welcomed the policy of the allies against China, especially the decision to delete Huawei from the 5G national network. Johnson and Pompeo confirmed the intention of the two countries to conclude a large trade agreement in the near future, which is especially important for the UK in connection with the exit from the EU.
According to the Foreign Ministry, which is referred to by The Financial Times, about 200 thousand citizens of Hong Kong can come to live over the next five years.
China threatens the United Kingdom with “consequences”. And although so far it was only a translation of the broadcast of matches of the English football premiere league to unpopular television channels, few doubts that this will not be limited to this.
China carefully monitors each personal “unfriendly” statement.
The English newspaper Guardian recalls that Chinese television took off the air of the American NBA after his executive director expressed solidarity with protesters in Hong Kong. The same fate befell matches with the participation of Arsenal, when the player Mesut Ozil (German of Turkish descent, Muslim) condemned the Chinese repressive policy against Muslim-Uyghurs on social networks.