Hong Kongers who were born after the end of British rule in 1997 are not eligible, meaning that in effect, many of the city\u2019s young student activists cannot take advantage of the British offer
\nnews agency
\nLONDON
\nBritain announced Wednesday that it was extending residency rights for up to 3 million Hong Kongers eligible for the British National Overseas passport, stressing that it would uphold its historic duty to the former British colony after Beijing imposed a sweeping new national security law in the city.
\nForeign Secretary Dominic Raab told lawmakers that amid widespread concerns about Beijing\u2019s tightening grip on Hong Kong, the UK was changing its immigration rules to give people who are connected to Britain by virtue of the city\u2019s status as a former British colony a special route to citizenship.
\nEligible individuals from Hong Kong currently can come to the UK for six months without a visa. Under the new policy, they will have the right to live and work in the country for five years. After that, they will be allowed to apply for settled status and then again for citizenship.
\nHong Kongers who were born after the end of British rule in 1997 are not eligible, meaning that in effect, many of the city\u2019s young student activists who are most at risk of arrest under the new law cannot take advantage of the British offer.
\nThe announcement came hours after China imposed a sweeping new national security law in Hong Kong that Britain calls a flagrant breach of China\u2019s international obligations and a \u201cclear and serious violation\u201d of the Sino-British Joint Declaration.
\nThat treaty paved the way for Hong Kong\u2019s handover from British to Chinese rule in 1997, and was supposed to guarantee at least 50 years of Western-style rule of law and civil liberties for the city under a \u201cOne Country, Two Systems\u201d principle until 2047.
\nChinese officials have in the past referred to the document as a \u201chistorical document,\u201d a claim that Britain strongly rejects.
\n\u201cThe prime minister and the government are crystal clear that the United Kingdom will keep its word,\u201d Raab said. \u201cWe will live up to our responsibilities to the people of Hong Kong.\u201d
\nThe UK introduced a special, limited type of British nationality in the 1980s for people who were a \u201cBritish dependent territories citizen by connection with Hong Kong.\u201d The passports did not confer nationality or the automatic right to live and work in Britain, but entitled holders to consular assistance from UK diplomatic posts.
\nBritain\u2019s government estimates there are about 350,000 current holders of the British National Overseas passports, with a total of around 2.9 million people eligible for it. It says the extended residency rules will apply to all of them and their immediate dependents.
\nNo exact date was given for the new rule\u2019s implementation, and Raab said further details will be announced later.
\nRaab called the security law a \u201cgrave and deeply disturbing step,\u201d and said it contained measures that directly threaten the judicial independence and freedoms of speech and protest protected by the Joint Declaration. It was particularly concerning that mainland Chinese authorities can now take jurisdiction over some cases without independent oversight, and try those cases in Chinese courts, he said.
\nTrust in China\u2019s ability to live up to its international responsibilities took \u201ca big step backwards,\u201d he added.
\nThe security law makes secessionist, subversive, terrorist activities and foreign intervention in Hong Kong\u2019s affairs illegal. The most serious offenders, such as those deemed to be masterminds behind the crimes, could receive a maximum punishment of life imprisonment.
\nMany critics in the city and abroad say the law effectively ends \u201cOne Country, Two Systems\u201d policy and erases the legal firewall between Hong Kong and the mainland\u2019s Communist Party rule.
\nHong Kong police arrested nine people under the law Wednesday, the first day it came into effect. They included a man with a Hong Kong independence flag and a woman holding a sign displaying the British flag and calling for Hong Kong\u2019s independence. Others were detained for possessing items advocating independence.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Hong Kongers who were born after the end of British rule in 1997 are not eligible, meaning that in effect, many of the city\u2019s young student activists cannot take advantage of the British offer news agency LONDON Britain announced Wednesday that it was extending residency rights for up to 3 million Hong Kongers eligible for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-129694","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n