The number of residents who moved from Hong Kong to Taiwan almost doubled last year. It involved about 11,000 people, the highest number in at least thirty years.
The outflow of thousands of Hong Kongers coincided with the introduction of controversial security law in the metropolis.
Figures from the Taiwanese Migration Service show that 10,813 residents of Hong Kong made the switch. In 2019 there were 5858. The previous record dated from 2014 when 7,506 residents of the Chinese city left for the Chinese coast’s democratically controlled island. Such figures have been kept there since 1991.
China enacted the security law last year after ongoing mass protests in Hong Kong. This metropolis used to be a British crown colony but has been part of China since 1997. The communist rulers had promised that the city would receive special status for at least 50 years, with more freedoms than other regions.
The new law gives authorities more options to target activists. Since its introduction, all kinds of prominent figures within the pro-democracy movement have been arrested or fled. The Chinese Coast Guard arrested 12 more activists in August who tried to flee to Taiwan by speedboat.