Perth Hong Kong students say Hong Kong residents who are worried about political persecution by Chinese death threat seeking asylum can apply for protection under existing humanitarian programs in Australia. The Federal government, however, has also been considering alternatives for Hong Kong residents, which may include special humanitarian assistance, such as that provided to 12,000 Syrian refugee in 2015.
The Hong Kong student in Perth has been considering seeking asylum in Australia Mary" the past six months because she has been active in the Hong Kong Democracy Movement and has been death threat. by the Chinese, according to ABC.
A 25-year-old college student worried that threat, from Beijing only agreed to wear masks and use aliases to share their stories. "Both our addresses and personal information are disclosed in the Chinese social media social app. "I have been death threat ." by the Chinese
Mary also said she was followed by Chinese people after a rally last year, and police warned her that those people were secretly taking pictures of her. "The police went over and asked them ,'Who sent you here? 'They pretend to be the journalist ." of Western media
"The police... tell them leave, but they just go back to the car and wait and follow me to the apartment building.
"When I went downstairs to pick up the goods that day, I saw the car still there. "
Mary say these things are disturbing. "Even in such a free country, it is not safe for us. "
Mary believe that if she flies to Hong Kong, she will be arrested under the new Hong Kong National Security Law.
But she has close ties to her hometown, and she suffers from asylum applications. "I'm still holding a student visa and I' ve been hoping to extend my visa to find a job and then migrate to Australia instead of seeking asylum. "she said.
"Because once I get an asylum visa, I can't go home forever, and even though I know the current risk of returning home is high, I still do n' t want to never go home. "
Hong Kong residents worried about political persecution can apply for protection under existing humanitarian plans in Australia. The Federal government, however, has also been considering alternatives for Hong Kong residents, which may include special humanitarian assistance, such as that provided to 12,000 Syrian refugee in 2015.
another hong kong student studying in perth, the 24-year-old John, expressed the same concerns as Mary and said he was followed.
He went back to Hong Kong last year for several months and said he had suffered tear gas and pepper bullets during protest activities.
John said he was photographed by Perth's Chinese nationals because of his recent pro-Hong Kong democracy campaign. "After protest activities, I went back to my house and when I was working out at the gym... Found some Chinese filming my photo ."
"I was a little nervous. "
He also said his personal details were also shared on the Chinese social media platform social app. "They told me where I went to exercise and some personal details, so I moved out of my house. "
John urged the Australian government to enact a Magnitsky Act (Magnitsky Act) that sanctions violators of human rights.
He also supported the idea of "special visas for Hong Kong protest" to stay in Australia.
John and Mary were born in 1997 before hong kong was returned to china by the uk and both held british national overseas passports. But John said he had never been to England and he might prefer to be in Australia if he was to live permanently anywhere outside Hong Kong.
"Our culture and language are so special that we can't find it anywhere else, in other countries ," he said. "
"The beauty of Hong Kong lies in the people.
"Above all, the bonds between us, the people of Hong Kong, wherever they are, will remain united and willing to help each other even when we suffer. "John said.
