China accuses US of forcibly deporting its students without valid evidence; warns of counter-measures

Beijing, April 8

China on Monday accused the US of forcibly deporting Chinese students without any valid evidence and warned of “resolute measures” to safeguard the interests of its nationals.

The US has been overstretching the concept of national security and without any valid evidence, arbitrarily cancelled Chinese students’ visas, banned them from entering the US and forcibly deported them, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told a media briefing here.

Asked about reports that Chinese students and scholars were interrogated and forcibly deported when entering the US border at the Washington Dulles Airport and the Dallas Airport, Mao said, the US moves inflicted enormous damage on the persons concerned and obstructed people-to-people exchanges between China and the US.

“The recent cases show that the US law enforcement personnel are bent on making excuses for deporting Chinese personnel. These are typical cases of selective, discriminatory and politically motivated law enforcement,” Mao said.

“China will take resolute measures to safeguard the legitimate and lawful rights and interests of Chinese citizens. The US needs to immediately stop unjustifiably harassing,” she said.

China’s state-run Global Times quoted Chinese Ambassador to the US Xie Feng alleging that dozens of Chinese arriving in the US, including students, were being denied entry every month over the past few months.

They held valid visas, had no criminal records, and were returning to school after travelling elsewhere or reuniting with their family in China, he said.

But when they landed at the airport, what awaited them was an 8-hour-long interrogation by officers, who prohibited them from contacting their parents, made groundless accusations against them, and even forcibly deported them and banned their entry, Xie alleged.

According to the US Department of Homeland Security reports, last year Indian students overtook the Chinese in American educational institutions.

The number of students going to the US climbed to 3.20 lakh last year against 2.54 lakhs attributed by Chinese officials to the increasingly negative environment in the United States over concerns about the flight of scientific knowledge.