It doesn’t invalidate their passport, but even minor crimes be grounds for refusal of entry. Since (in the case of BNO) they are providing only a “pathway to citizenship”, not a guarantee to enter the country.
That's not actually true. BNO status is a type of British nationality, and BNO passport holders have always held the ability to enter the UK like any normal British citizen, i.e. without a visa or need to seek entry clearance at the border. It's just that up until now BNO passport holders did not hold an unrestricted right to
live in the UK and could only stay for six months in any given year.
One thing I am not clear on is whether BNO passport holders had special restrictions on entry compared to regular British citizens. There's nothing in official guidance to say so.
However, the simple reality is that even if immigration officers might be concerned about a HK person's offending, that information may not be available. Landing cards have been scrapped, so there's no need to tip immigration officials off that you've been convicted of a crime. Unless the new system will see immigration staff scroll through pages of petty charges like shoplifting and unlawful assembly to find something relevant, one would assume that their offending would need to be of a type that meant it was captured and visible digitally.
Besides, even if an immigration officer realises a BNO passport holder has committed some offences and had jail time, I wouldn't be surprised if they were waived through on the basis of
"I took part in the HK protests and the judge was heavy-handed at sentencing". It might lead to a delay at the border, but unlikely to be a flat refusal - and if it did, then you'd probably get an asylum claim.
A judge would have to be very careful with such rulings... Being he was convicted prior to the NSL, he cannot make the argument that he was a "prisoner of conscience". If a judge were to validate such an argument, almost all HK criminals eligible for BNO would flock to UK. Criminal organizations would love this.
Assuming there's any discretion, I don't think there's a real risk of opening the doors to Triad mobsters who cut people into pieces just because someone who got a few months jail time for "affray" is allowed into the UK.
Almost all countries will turn away people with simple drug convictions. Most people in HK going to jail were not for "unlawful assembly", but active violence.
The US is very hard on it, but that's not the case for the UK. Minor drug convictions do not lead to an automatic refusal of entry clearance. The UK is primarily concerned about people who have committed crimes in the UK with a sentence of 12 or more months in prison and are
seeking to return. Possession of cannabis, for example, in the US or Canada is irrelevant.
The US has passed similar legislation for HK, so it is relevant.
Except that I'm not suggesting HK people should go to the US or that the US should be praised for their policies. What the UK is doing is completely separate.
I cannot speak directly for UK since I am not at all familiar with UK refugee approaches
I can promise you that anyone from Hong Kong claiming asylum isn't going to be refused because of a moderate amount of jail time related to the protests, unless it's clear there were involved in extreme and sustained violence. It's simply not part of how asylum claims are considered. The options to refuse asylum on the basis of criminality are very limited.
Were you not aware of their "laam chau" policy? We all burn together? Also called "Never cut apart". They got just what they wanted.
Again, that's got nothing to do with the vast majority of HK people that protested peacefully or voiced their views without taking to the streets.
Anyway, the posturing by US/UK/AU is a joke. It's obvious that these governments are hoping for a quick capital injection
There's no capital injection that HK residents can provide that would be of obvious use to the UK. Because it's not in the eurozone it can print its own money, and the Bank of England has been providing amazing support during the Covid-19 crisis. Besides, the richest Hong Kong residents will probably stay, because they're part of the ruling elite and benefit from everyone else being terrified of the authorities. Even those that are worried have already set up bolt-holes in other countries and moved money around - much like top CCP officials do. People like that don't need to use their BNO passports because they already can apply for an investor visa.
Whether the UK and other governments feel they need to do something or are worried about public pressure if they don't, there's no financial incentive in this. I suppose there are those that feel it would be helpful to have migrants that are likely to speak English and have a good education, but those are
mitigating factors in agreeing to potentially mass migration rather than a reason for it. If the UK just wanted more high-skilled workers it would just agree Freedom of Movement with the EU in the current trade negotiations.
George Galloway puts it succintly.
"I'm angry no one in the UK is stupid enough to vote for me anymore!"
Honestly, you can track the man's extremism with his declining electoral fortunes.