CHINA WON’T RECOGNIZE HONG KONGERS’ BRITISH NATIONAL OVERSEAS PASSPORT

Fri 29 January 2021:

China on Friday said it will “no longer recognise” the British National (Overseas) passport for Hong Kongers, as Britain prepares to offer millions of former colonial subjects a way to escape Beijing’s crackdown on dissent.

“China will no longer recognize so-called BNO passports as valid travel documents and identity certificates, starting Jan. 31,” China’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Zhao Lijian told a news conference in Beijing.

From Sunday, those with a BN(O) passport and their dependents will be able to apply online for a visa allowing them to live and work in the United Kingdom. After five years they can then apply for citizenship.

It is unclear what China’s declaration means in practical terms.

But it sets the stage for further confrontation with London, and the threat of further action suggests Beijing may be preparing more restrictions for BN(O) holders down the line.

The move comes after the UK announced to issue special BNO visas to Hong Kongers from Sunday, allowing them to live and work in the country and eventually apply for British nationality.

“Despite the fact that it has been 24 years since Hong Kong returned to the motherland [China], the UK has blatantly broken its commitment by introducing the BNO policy, which attempts to turn a large number of Hong Kong people into ‘second-class’ British citizens,” Zhao quoted by Chinese daily Global Times as saying.

Britain accused China of tearing up its promise ahead of Hong Kong’s 1997 handover that the financial hub would maintain key liberties and autonomy for 50 years. It argues it has a moral duty to protect its former subjects.

But on Friday Beijing hit back ahead of the upcoming change.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in a statement on Friday: “I am immensely proud that we have brought in this new route for Hong Kong BN(O)s to live, work and make their home in our country.”

Hong Kong was a British colony until 1997 and is now a semi-autonomous Chinese territory.

“The UK’s BNO tricks grossly infringe upon China’s sovereignty, interferes in Hong Kong and China’s internal affairs, and gravely violate international law and norms,” said the spokesman.

British citizenship

In response to China imposing national security law in the semi-autonomous region last July, UK had announced the new visa scheme and will come into effect this Sunday, making Hong Kongers eligible to get British citizenship.

How many Hong Kongers will take up the offer remains to be seen, especially as the coronavirus pandemic restricts global flights and mires much of the world, including Britain, in a painful economic malaise.

But a BN(O) passport is available to a huge number of people — about 70 percent of Hong Kong’s total population of 7.5 million.

Applications for BN(O) passports have skyrocketed more than 300 percent since the national security law was imposed last July, with 733,000 registered holders as of mid-January.

Applying for a Hong Kong BN(O) visa? The fully digital route which opens on 23 Feb uses an app: it is easier, more convenient and doesn’t require a visit to a Visa Application Centre.https://t.co/o511iWReGs pic.twitter.com/k9nhiS76bE

— UK in Hong Kong 🇬🇧 (@UKinHongKong) January 29, 2021

Britain predicts up to 154,000 Hong Kongers could arrive over the next year and as many as 322,000 over five years, bringing an estimated “net benefit” of up to £2.9 billion ($4 billion) with them.

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