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‘Hegemonic bullying’: Hong Kong hits out at US after ‘safe haven’ status extended
- City’s government and Chinese foreign ministry office urge Washington to stop interfering in Hong Kong affairs
- President Joe Biden has extended special treatment for US-based Hongkongers, citing ‘compelling foreign policy reasons’
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The Chinese foreign ministry’s office in Hong Kong has hit out at the United States for extending its “safe haven” status for Hongkongers seeking refuge, saying Washington should stop using the city to contain China.
Hong Kong’s government released a similar statement hours later on Friday, branding the US move as “hegemonic bullying”.
It came after US President Joe Biden on Thursday extended for 24 months the deferred enforced departure, or DED, status for Hongkongers based in the United States, citing “compelling foreign policy reasons”.
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The status means that Hongkongers who are not US residents but are currently in the country are not subject to deportation for that period of time and can apply for a US work permit. The special treatment was introduced in a 2021 memorandum in response to Beijing’s crackdown on opposition lawmakers and activists after it imposed a national security law in Hong Kong in 2020. The DED status was set to expire on February 5.
According to the US Department of Homeland Security, there were 3,860 US-based Hongkongers eligible for the DED designation in March 2021.
In a statement on Friday, the Commissioner’s Office of the Chinese Foreign Ministry in Hong Kong said the status extension aimed to stir up chaos and cause disruption in the city by providing refuge for “anti-China forces who have left Hong Kong”. It also said US criticism of law and order and press freedom in Hong Kong was fabricated.
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