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The Lais’ wrenching decision to uproot their family, which @Reuters has documented for the past five months, provides a glimpse of the deep societal wounds that mass emigration could inflict on Hong Kong https://reut.rs/3aznBn4 1/10
Unlike protesters and activists who have fled Hong Kong facing charges related to the anti-government demonstrations, the Lais are a typical middle-class, politically moderate family in the city 2/10
The Lai family have already rented a four-bedroom, three-bath home in a suburb south of Glasgow, which they’ll share for five months with the other Hong Kong family who emigrated to Scotland 3/10
Since the imposition of the national security law, there has been a broad crackdown on dissent. Leading activists have been arrested, some democratic lawmakers have been disqualified, activists have fled into exile and protest slogans and songs have been declared illegal 4/10
Officials in Hong Kong are adamant that rights and freedoms are intact. They say the national security law is needed to maintain public safety and order in the wake of last year’s protests 5/10
A Hong Kong government spokesman said last year’s 'violent protests and anarchy on the streets' may be one of the motivations for people choosing to emigrate, along with jobs, schooling and business opportunities or other personal reasons 6/10
There are no official statistics on how many are leaving the city. But several proxy measures show a rising trend of people emigrating or looking to leave. The scale is comparable to Hong Kong’s previous mass exodus during the decade leading up to the 1997 handover 7/10
The United Kingdom has issued more than 200,000 British National Overseas passports so far this year, according to a British government official. The passports are a legacy document of the colonial era that provides a path to citizenship 8/10
Hong Kongers’ other preferred destinations are Canada and Australia, both of which eased visa restrictions in the wake of the security law, according to immigration agents and relocation firms https://reut.rs/3nDR4Ab 9/10
Read the full story showing a glimpse of the deep wounds that mass emigration could inflict on Hong Kong, separating families and communities as people move elsewhere hoping to find the freedoms they have lost https://reut.rs/3aznBn4 by @pakwayne @MZaharia 10/10
