UK Civil Society offers welcome to Hong Kongers

In two days’ time, one of the most generous, courageous and extensive migration policies in modern British history opens to Hong Kongers.

From this coming Sunday, January 31, up to five million Hong Kongers – those born before 1997 and with eligibility for British National Overseas (BNO) status, and their dependents – will be able to apply for the new BNO scheme which would give them the right to come to Britain, live, study and work in Britain, and be on a pathway to citizenship, security and freedom. 180 years after Britain landed in Hong Kong, we are preparing to welcome Hong Kongers to Britain.

The policy is bold, and it is right. After the draconian national security law was imposed on Hong Kong, without any consultation with Hong Kongers, dramatically dismantling Hong Kong’s promised freedoms and autonomy and in total, grave breach of an international treaty, the Sino-British Joint Declaration, the British government had both a moral and a legal duty to respond with more than words and empty gestures. A moral responsibility, given our history with Hong Kong. A legal duty, as a co-signatory to the Joint Declaration. And the British government acted fast. It should have acted much earlier to support Hong Kong, true, but when it did finally act, it was rapid.

On July 1 last year – the very day the national security law came into force – Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the new scheme in the House of Commons, and Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab spelled out more details that same day. If Hong Kongers are to have their freedoms snatched from them by the Chinese Communist Party regime in their own city, they can recover their freedoms in Britain instead.

No one knows how many will take up the offer. The pandemic, travel restrictions and quarantine rules will make it harder and probably slow the expected flow in the immediate term. Many Hong Kongers will wish to stay in their home city, especially those are not politically active, are not in direct danger from the regime or who even support the regime. Others who choose to leave will opt for other offers, in Canada, Australia, the United States or European countries, either because they have family connections, educational links, business opportunities or other relationships with those countries, or because they don’t qualify for the BNO scheme. Some will go to Taiwan, for cultural and linguistic reasons. The fact that Canada, Australia and others have offered a lifeboat rescue programme is to be welcomed, as no one country, no matter how generous and brave, can take everyone.

But for those who do take up the BNO offer from Sunday onwards, I want to deliver a clear message: you are warmly welcome and we look forward to your arrival. A growing number of individuals and groups throughout Britain are getting ready to welcome you. Several civil society networks are forming to ensure that communities up and down Britain are prepared to help Hong Kongers who arrive in their neighborhood – to offer friendship, hospitality, and practical support.

Last night a new network of churches throughout Britain was launched in a webinar addressed by the Bishop of Manchester, the founder of the 24/7 Prayer Network, the director of Welcome Churches and the lead guitarist of the band Mumford and Sons, Winston Marshall. The brainchild of Christian social entrepreneur Krish Kandiah, this network – “Hong Kong Ready Churches” – aims to mobilize churches across Britain to be on standby to help, with everything from offering short-term accommodation to those who need it to simple friendship for everyone who arrives.

Other groups are also emerging, preparing to provide advice on jobs, how to find a school, how to register with a doctor, how to find housing, language teaching, trauma counselling and mental health support, and other needs. A new charity, the Hong Kong Assistance and Resettlement Community (HK ARC) is being formed, specifically to provide support to the most vulnerable who come to Britain, and I have the privilege of serving as a trustee. A webinar on February 11 aims to further mobilize civil society to get involved. Information websites of various kinds are being developed to provide advice to Hong Kongers arriving in the UK.

Still others are involved in advocating to the British government or helping local authorities, to make sure that a plan is in place for integration and resources made available.

And the British government and politicians are fully behind this. Britain’s Home Secretary Priti Patel deserves great credit for her leadership in designing the policy and championing its implementation.

Ministers know that it will not be easy, and that especially in the midst of a pandemic and an economically challenging time for Britain there will be challenges ahead in receiving hundreds of thousands of migrants. But they also know that it is worth it. It is worth it because it is the right thing to do. And it is worth it because we all know that, in the long-run, Hong Kongers will bring an energy, entrepreneurialism, dynamism, vitality and creativity to our society that can only be a benefit. Hong Kongers are – as a generalization – people who start businesses, create jobs and will contribute to our economy. They will be professionals – doctors, nurses, lawyers, accountants and teachers, who will bring talent to our public sector. Some are even advocating the idea of a “charter city” for Hong Kongers, perhaps in the north of England.

In other words, we are excited. At the same time, our excitement is tinged with immense sadness. We are excited about welcoming Hong Kongers to Britain. But we wish that it was not necessary. We wish that “one country, two systems” had been protected, that promises to respect Hong Kong’s freedoms had been kept, that Hong Kong’s autonomy and way of life had been respected, so that it would not be necessary for Hong Kongers to flee their wonderful city. Yet given where we are now, we know that many Hong Kongers want to build a new life, in the free world, for themselves and their children, in a place where they can sleep at night without fear of the police breaking down their door, and can speak their mind without fear of arrest and torture.

Britain is far from perfect, it has made many mistakes, and has not always acted in the right way. And we face big challenges of our own right now. But nonetheless, I am proud of Britain for having done the right thing for Hong Kongers in the end, and I am proud of British people for the way they have responded so positively to the BNO offer and are getting ready to welcome you.

In 1997 I moved to Hong Kong and made it my home for the first five years after the handover. It was where I began my working life, as a journalist and an activist. In 2017, I was denied entry to Hong Kong on the orders of Beijing. But now, though I can’t go to Hong Kong, you Hong Kongers can come to Britain, and we can meet again, and you can make it your home. There is much to do, but be assured that if you apply for the BNO scheme from Sunday onwards, you’ll be received as friends. We in Britain are getting “Hong Kong Ready”.

Benedict Rogers is Co-founder and Chief Executive of Hong Kong Watch. This article was published in Apple Daily on 29 January 2021.