BNO passport Infographic: Xu Zihe, Fengqingyin/GT
China has officially withdrawn its recognition of British National (Overseas), or BN(O), passports as a valid travel and ID document starting from Sunday (January 31) as the UK began accepting citizenship applications for BN(O)-eligible Hong Kong residents starting on the same day. Experts said this is just the first of many countermeasures that China can take to retaliate against the UK regarding the violation of China's sovereignty.
Experts from the Chinese mainland and Hong Kong said Sunday that the UK's aggressive move will trigger a series of responses from the Chinese government including banning Hong Kong BN(O) passport holders who obtain UK citizenship via the new UK visa scheme from entering the political system of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR). They called the countermeasures a wise option to minimize potential impacts, precisely striking against foreign forces trying to meddle in the Hong Kong affairs.
Despite Joe Biden taking office in the US and some members of the Five Eyes Alliance, like Australia, showing intent to alter their hostile policies toward China, the UK will remain a unique case continuing to confront China in an attempt to reinforce its "major power image" after the Brexit. As a result, China-UK ties will experience more frictions and conflicts not only regarding Hong Kong SAR but also on China's Xinjiang, the South China Sea and in the science and technology arena.
Zhao Lijian, a spokesperson for the Chinese Foreign Ministry, said on Friday, "In disregard of China's solemn position and the fact that it has been 24 years since Hong Kong returned to the motherland, the British side blatantly violated its commitment, formulated the so-called bespoke policy of abode and citizenship in the UK for BN(O)s and continued to expand its scope of application."
By trying to turn many Hong Kong residents into "second-class citizens" in the UK, Britain has discarded the mutual understanding on the BN(O) between China and the UK, Zhao said. "The 'BN(O)' today is nothing like what it was."
Two top Chinese authorities overseeing Hong Kong affairs denounced UK's new immigration scheme for BN(O) holders on Sunday, as the liaison office of the central government in Hong Kong and the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council calling it an act of treachery and manipulation to turn a large proportion of the Hong Kong people into "second-class citizens."
The UK boastfully claimed to respect its "historical ties and friendship" with Hong Kong, beautified its history of colony and of invasion in an undisguised way, which was shameless logic of robbery, the Hong Kong and Macao Affairs Office of the State Council said.
The UK's move grossly violates China's sovereignty, interferes in both Hong Kong and China's internal affairs, and runs counter to international law and basic norms governing international relations. China deplores and firmly rejects this, Zhao remarked. "And we reserve the right to take further action."
More to comeRegarding further countermeasures against the UK for opening a pathway for Hong Kong BN(O) holders, some experts believe that China will take further action after evaluating the actual impact of this new immigration scheme. For example, after taking into account the real numbers of those people applying for citizenship, authorities will evaluate whether it will impact the interests of Hong Kong.
Tian Feilong, an associate professor at Beihang University in Beijing and a member of the Beijing-based Chinese Association of Hong Kong and Macao Studies, told the Global Times that withdrawing the recognition of BN(O) passports is just the first step. "To further adjust the legal status of the BN(O), China's top national legislature - the National People's Congress - needs to interpret the legislature for a second time in order to clarify issues related to 'single nationality' that has legal implications in Hong Kong and the details of its application."
"For those applying for the new immigration scheme the UK offered to relevant people in the HKSAR, local laws in Hong Kong need to be further rectified in imposing restrictions on their civil and political rights, including the right of abode, of welfare and casting votes," Tian said, adding that it will also help safeguarding the fundamentals as "Hong Kong patriots governing Hong Kong."
Although Tam Yiu-chung, a member of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, said there is no arrangement for further interpretation of the legislature at the NPC Standing Committee, under local laws in Hong Kong - the immigration ordinance - those applying for the UK's immigration pathway scheme - would be automatically deprived of their permanent residence status in Hong Kong.
Hong Kong residents tear up BNO passports in front of the consulate to protest against UK interference over the national security law. File Photo: Courtesy of Ko Chung Kit Jack