(FeaturedNews.com) – The United States Department of State has recently unveiled a fresh advisory urging US citizens to reconsider any plans to travel to China, due to potential risks of unjustified apprehension following arbitrary law enforcement practices in the country. The advisory was delivered just eight weeks subsequent to the lifetime imprisonment sentence imposed on a 78-year-old American in China on grounds of espionage.
The recent advisory highlights that the People’s Republic of China (PRC) has been inconsistently implementing laws, including the instigation of exit prohibitions on international citizens, inclusive of Americans, absent of any clear procedure. It additionally warns that Americans who are either visiting or residing in the country may be at risk of arbitrary arrest, lacking any support services or essential information from US consular offices to aid them in their defense.
Such regulations could potentially impact all foreign nationals, ranging from corporate executives, researchers, individuals with family ties to PRC nationals, previous government workers, and members of the press. The warning also emphasizes the implementation of “exit bans,” which prevent individuals from departing China after they have entered. These restrictions are reportedly a tactic employed by the government to compel individuals to comply with government investigations, or to induce the return of associates or family of the restricted person. Occasionally, they have also been exploited as negotiation tools against foreign governments.
In the previous month, John Shing-Wan Leung, a Hong Kong permanent resident apprehended on April 15, 2021, received a life sentence in China on the suspicion of espionage. The precise accusations have not been publicly disclosed. Although the US Embassy in Beijing acknowledges the case, it has refrained from releasing any further details due to privacy considerations.
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