Hong Kong denied entry to about 23,000 people in first 9 months of the year, immigration chief says
Hong Kong Free Press
Hong Kong denied entry to about 23,000 people in the first nine months of the year, the immigration chief has said, with 85 per cent of them considered to have “suspicious aims” for entering the city.
Director of Immigration Benson Kwok told a Commercial Radio programme on Sunday that the people being denied entry amounted to 0.07 per cent of all arrivals from January to September this year, a figure similar to previous levels. He did not elaborate when saying most of those rejected had “suspicious aims.”
“Hong Kong welcomes genuine visitors,” Kwok said in Cantonese. “But we have the duty to guard the southern gate of our country. We will strictly inspect [the visits] of unwelcomed individuals and bar them from entering when needed.”
Kwok said the Immigration Department (ImmD) had compiled a “watch list” of unwelcomed individuals who were considered a risk to national security or Hong Kong’s social order.
But residents would not be put on the watch list, he said.
He also said a new system had been implemented last month which required all airlines operating flights into Hong Kong to transfer passenger data to the ImmD prior to take-off.
The system, known as the Advance Passenger Information System, collects information such as the full name, birthday, gender, and nationality of the passengers.
Airlines should block a passenger from boarding the flight if the system provides a “no-board” direction. Hong Kong permanent residents would not be affected by the system.
Kwok said the new system had been effective in barring unwelcomed individuals from boarding flights for Hong Kong.
But those who were denied boarding could apply for a visa from the ImmD, he said, adding that the ImmD would allow their visit if their purpose of coming to Hong Kong was deemed “non-suspicious.”
Cases of entry denials involving activists or journalists have hit the headlines more often since the enactment of Beijing’s national security law in 2020. Since the authorities do not publicise such incidents, entry denials usually only come to light if the traveller chooses to go public.
See also: Explainer: Banned from Hong Kong – a brief history of entry denials at the city’s borders
This year, among those denied entry included Japanese activist Uryu Hirano, who has been vocal about her support for the city’s pro-democracy movement, and a representative for free expression NGO Reporters Without Borders Aleksandra Bielakowska.
National Day arrival figures
Separately, Kwok said Hong Kong logged 980,000 arrivals from mainland China between October 1 – China’s National Day – and Saturday. The figure represents a 35 per cent increase compared with the same five-day period last year, part of China’s “Golden Week” holiday.
On National Day itself, more than 220,000 mainland Chinese visitors travelled to the city, he said, up from about 177,000 on the same day last year.
See also: HKFP Lens – Hong Kong awash with public displays of patriotism on China’s National Day
He said all checkpoints had been operating smoothly despite the large influx of mainland Chinese visitors.
Kwok also estimated that the total number of passengers entering and leaving the city this year could reach 300 million, close to the pre-pandemic figure in 2019.
Hong Kong lifted Covid-related travel curbs last February. The total number of passengers entering and leaving Hong Kong last year was 210 million, Kwok said.
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