Chinese asylum-seekers grow at an alarming rate under Xi’s rule

The number of Chinese nationals seeking asylum overseas has skyrocketed under ruling Chinese Communist Party (CCP) leader Xi Jinping, according to a recent report. Figures released by the United Nations' refugee agency UNHCR showed that while around 12,000 Chinese nationals sought asylum overseas in 2012, the year that Xi took office as CCP general secretary, that number had rising to nearly 120,000 by 2021. "Year by year since Xi Jinping came to power, in lockstep with a more oppressive system of governance, the number of asylum-seekers from China has continued to grow at an alarming rate," the overseas-based rights group Safeguard Defenders reported on its website. Clearly, many Chinese nationals are having a problem with the Communist Party of China (CPC) and its way of governance. This trend became prominent after Xi Jinping took office in 2013 as the CPC General Secretary.

For most asylum seekers from China, the US remains the most popular destination. America accepted 88,722 applicants from mainland China in 2021, and Australia took 15,774 asylum-seekers in the same year. Thousands also apply for asylum in Canada, Brazil, South Korea, and the UK. Researcher Jing-jie Chen, working for Safeguard Defenders, said the data also reflects the impact of Xi’s zero-Covid policy, which has led to grueling lockdowns and draconian restrictions on people’s movements under the guise of disease control and prevention.

However, while Chinese nationals are choosing to leave their country fearing oppressive rule, the risk of transnational repression has also grown, including the use of involuntary returns. This is a feature already noticed prominently in the case of Uyghurs who have fled Xinjiang and sought asylum in other countries. Chinese law enforcement agencies routinely track, harass, threaten and repatriate people who flee China, under its SkyNet surveillance program that reaches far beyond China’s borders, using a variety of means to have them forcibly repatriated.

The report stated that the CPC has a coordinated international operation called “Operation Foxhunt” to force Chinese nationals to return home. Chen notes that since Xi Jinping took over as CPC General Secretary, he has brought the ‘Foxhunt’ plan for the global oppression of dissidents that extends internationally. Between the launch of the SkyNet program in 2014 and June 2021, China repatriated nearly 10,000 people from 120 countries and regions, the report said. Yet, just one percent is brought back to China using judicial procedures; more than 60 percent are just put on a plane against their will.