As Parliament prepares to vote on amendment to allow young Hong Kongers to access BNO scheme, new report shows young people account for 93% of those charged in protest cases.
One week before Parliament will vote on whether to allow under 25s to access the BNO scheme, a new Hong Kong Watch report has found that 93% of the defendants who had faced charges related to the anti-extradition law protests (as of 31 July 2021) were born in or after 1997. Other key findings of the report include:
· 29% of those facing National Security Law charges are under the age of 25.
· Of all those charged with politicised rioting charges, 72.5% are under the age of 25.
· Of the 10,000 people arrested during the protest movement, 2,000 were still at primary or secondary school. (Full dataset below)
These findings are released one week before the consideration of the Nationality and Borders Bill at Report Stage, which is scheduled for hearing on 7-8 December.
Read the report in full.
Damian Green has tabled an amendment to the Bill, supported by leading Conservatives and cross-party MPs, which would be a stand-alone clause that would require the Secretary of State for the Home Department to make provision to allow Hong Kongers with one parent who has British National Overseas (BNO) status to register for the Government’s British National Overseas Visa Scheme, and allow 18-25s to access the scheme.
Supporters of the amendment include the Foreign Affairs Select Committee Chair Tom Tugendhat, former Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt, former Cabinet Ministers Liam Fox, Andrew Mitchell, and David Davis, former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith, as well as Labour Select Committee chairs Stephen Timms and Sarah Champion, Green Party leader Caroline Lucas, as well as the Liberal Democrat and SNP Foreign Policy spokespeople Layla Moran and Alyn Smith.
Damian Green MP, a former immigration minister, and sponsor of the amendment commented on the new data, saying:
"It is unfair and surely not the government's intention that over 90% of those who have faced protest related trials are needlessly excluded from the BNO pathway to citizenship purely because of their age. My amendment would mandate a simple rule change that would ensure our immigration system offers a lifeline to the young people who need it most.
If we do not rationalise the policy in this way, many of these people will inevitably end up claiming asylum because they face political prosecution. One of the beneficial side effects of accepting my amendment would be to relieve some pressure on the asylum system.”
Sir Iain Duncan Smith, former Conservative leader, and supporter of the amendment said:
""The BN(O) Scheme is a great success story which the government should take credit for, but sadly the current scheme does not cover many of the brave young activists in Hong Kong. Many of these pro-democracy campaigners are in danger of being prosecuted by the intolerant Chinese Communist Party and its representatives in Hong Kong. I urge the Government to think carefully about helping these people too. We owe it to younger Hong Kong residents to support them in their struggle and to show that Britain stands up for freedom, human rights and the rule of law."
Tom Tugendhat, the Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, said:
"Young people are disproportionately likely to suffer from the crackdown in Hong Kong, yet many do not qualify for the BNO scheme. A small change to the immigration rules for BNO passport holders could be a lifeline. I hope the Home Secretary will consider bringing forward these changes as part of the Borders Bill."
The release of this new data follows a public call on 21 November by 7 of the leading Hong Kong activists in exile, including former lawmakers Nathan Law and Ted Hui and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Alex Chow, which called for the Home Secretary to offer a lifeline to Hong Kongers. The letter said:
“You may be aware that the vast majority of those who have faced trial for involvement in protests were born in or after 1997 and by virtue of their date of birth are unable to access the UK scheme. A number of us are in this category and have been forced either to seek asylum or access visa routes elsewhere. We ask you: please do not leave us and our friends out.”
The data
In partnership with legal scholars from Hong Kong, Hong Kong Watch has broken down the political prisoner charges in Hong Kong and has found the following:
- According to our research, at least 936 defendants out of 1009 who have faced charges relating to the anti-extradition law pro-democracy protests to date were born in or after 1997. This data is derived from multiple sources and includes only cases which completed the whole judicial process by 31 July 2021.
- Putting this into percentages, 93% of those who have faced charges related to the 2019 protests to date are not covered by the BN(O) policy.
- In addition, out of the 168 citizens arrested for the National Security Law or by the National Security Department on non-NSL charges such as sedition, 49 were born on or after 1997. This data is accurate as of October 2021.
- Translating this into percentages, 29% of those who have faced charges under the National Security Law are not covered by the BN(O) policy.
In addition, Stand News[1] reporting on rioting charges, as of April 2021, found that:
- Of the 750 people who have been charged under Hong Kong’s politicised rioting legislation[2], 543 were 24 years old or younger.
- Translating this into percentages, 72.5% of those who have faced politicised rioting charges and potentially years in jail are not covered by the BN(O) policy.
And Citizen News[3] recently underlined that:
- Of the 10,000 people who were arrested for participation in protests, as of the end of October 2020, around 2000 were primary and secondary school students, with 1747 being under the age of 18.
The amendment
NC5
To move the following clause –
British National (Overseas) visas: eligibility
1) Within two months of this Act being passed, the Secretary of State must amend the Immigration Rules to ensure that all persons meeting the condition set out in subsection (2) are eligible to apply for the BNO visa.
2) The condition referred to in subsection (1) is that the person has at least one parent who is a BNO.
英國國會將就申請BNO簽證計劃修正案投票
新報告顯示93%反修例示威被告為年輕人
在國會就是否容許25歲以下的香港人申請BNO簽證計劃前一個星期，香港監察最新的研究報告指出，93%因參與反修例示威而被檢控的人士(直至2021年7月31日)都是在1997年或以後出生的年輕人。
29%面臨國安法檢控的人士尚未滿25歲
在被政治化的暴動指控中，72.5% 的人士尚未滿 25 歲
在示威中被捕的10,000人當中，有2,000人仍在就讀小學或中學 (完整數據在下方)
這些數據是在審議《國籍及邊界法案》報告階段前一個星期發佈的，該法案的聽證會將在12月7日至8日舉行。
議員Damian Green對該法案提出了一項修正案，該修正案得到主要保守黨和跨黨派議員的支持。該修正案將是一項獨立條款，要求國務大臣作出修訂，允許父母其中一方擁有英國國民海外 (BNO) 身份的香港人申請BNO簽證計劃，以及允許 18-25 歲的人士申請該計劃。
支持該修正案的政客包括︰外交事務特別委員會主席Tom Tugendhat、前外交大臣Jeremy Hunt、前內閣部長Liam Fox、Andrew Mitchell和David Davis、前保守黨黨魁Iain Duncan Smith爵士，以及工黨特別委員會主席Stephen Timms和Sarah Champion，綠黨黨魁Caroline Lucas，以及自由民主黨和蘇格蘭民族黨外交政策發言人Layla Moran和Alyn Smith。
前移民部長、修正案的發起人Damian Green議員對於新數據表示：「超過 90% 面臨與示威相關的審判的人士因為年齡而被排除在 BNO 簽證計劃及獲取公民身份的途徑之外，這是不公平的，當然也不是政府的意圖。我的修正案將要求進行簡單的規則修訂，確保我們的移民制度為最有需要的年輕人提供救生索。
如果我們不合理化政策，許多人最終將因為面臨政治起訴而別無他選地申請庇護。若我的修正案獲接納，將有助減輕庇護系統的壓力。」
前保守黨黨魁、支持該修正案的Iain Duncan Smith爵士說：「BNO簽證計劃是成功的，政府應該為此感到自豪，但遺憾的是，目前的簽證計劃並未涵蓋部份年輕的香港示威者。很多社運人士面臨被中國共產黨及其在香港的代表起訴的危機。我促請政府仔細考慮幫助這些人士。我們應該感謝香港的年輕人和支持他們抗爭，並表明英國支持自由、人權和法治。」
外交事務委員會主席Tom Tugendhat說：「年輕人很可能受香港的鎮壓影響，但很多年輕人都不符合 BNO 計劃的申請資格。只要稍微修改針對BNO 護照持有人的出入境規例，就可為年輕人提供救生索。我希望內政大臣採納這些修訂，作為邊界法案的一部分。」
在11 月 21 日，7 位正在流亡的社運人士，包括前立法會議員羅冠聰、許智峯和獲提名諾貝爾和平獎的周永康，公開呼籲內政大臣為年輕香港人提供救生索。新數據是在這些社運人士發出公開信後發佈的。公開信中寫道：「 你可能知道大多數因參與示威而面臨審判的人士，都是在 1997 年或之後出生，他們的出生日期令他們無法參與BNO簽證計劃。我們當中有部份人士正屬於這個類別，被迫在其他地方尋求庇護或申請簽證。我們的請求是：『請不要把我們和我們的朋友排除在外。』」
關於數據
香港監察與香港的法律學者合作，分析香港的政治檢控個案，總結出以下的數據︰
根據我們的研究，到目前為止，在 1,009 名面臨與反修例示威相關的檢控的被告中，至少有 936 名被告是在 1997 年或之後出生的。這些數據來自多個資料來源，但僅包括在2021 年 7 月 31 日之前完成整個司法程序的個案。
將這些數據轉化為百分比，到目前為止，面臨與 2019 年示威活動有關的指控的人士當中，有 93% 不被BNO簽證計劃 涵蓋。
根據截至 2021 年 10 月的數據，因國安法或被國家安全部以煽動叛亂等非國安法罪名被捕的 168 名人士中，49 人在 1997 年或之後出生。
將這些數據轉化為百分比，因國安法面臨檢控的人士當中，有 29% 未被BNO簽證 計劃涵蓋。
此外，根據立場新聞就直至2021年4月有關暴動檢控的報導指出︰
因香港政治化的暴動法例被檢控的750名人士當中，543人年僅或未滿24歲
將這些數據轉化為百份比，72.5%被政治化的暴動罪檢控和可能被判監禁多年的人士，均未被BNO簽證計劃涵蓋。
眾新聞最近亦指出︰
直至2020年10月，在10,000名因參與示威被捕的人士當中，大約2,000人是小學及中學生，當中1,747人未滿18歲。
關於修正案
NC5
修改以下條款 –
英國國民(海外)簽證︰申請資格
1) 在本法案通過後的兩個月內，國務大臣必須修改移民規例，以確保所有符合第 (2) 款所規定的條件的人士都有資格申請 BNO 簽證。
2) 在第(1)款提及的條件是該名人士的父母至少其中一方持有英國國民(海外)身份。