As of Sunday, Hong Kong residents can apply for a visa that paves the way for British citizenship, according to Reuters. The new program coincides with China and Hong Kong no longer recognizing the British National Overseas (BNO) passport as a valid travel document. The UK and China have been talking about China’s attempt to silence pro-democracy protesters who were arrested in large numbers in 2019 and 2020.
The UK government says the new visa program is part of a moral commitment to Hong Kong residents after Beijing imposed a strict security law that violates the terms of the agreement by which the semi-autonomous city was returned to China. in 1997. The visa program is expected to attract more than 300,000 people living in Hong Kong and Britain. China said that those who obtained the visa would become “second class citizens”.
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