China has rolled out far-reaching travel restrictions targeting its own citizens, with new rules taking effect Tuesday that allow authorities to bar people from leaving the country if they are considered a threat to the nation’s “industrial or technological security.”
According to the State Council, anyone found violating regulations on technology imports and exports could be hit with an exit ban. Citizens accused of engaging in illegal activity while abroad face an even steeper penalty — a travel ban lasting six months to three years, calculated from the date they return to Chinese soil.
The rules arrive against the backdrop of an intensifying tech rivalry between Beijing and Washington. Both governments have in recent months traded accusations of stealing artificial intelligence breakthroughs developed by the other side.
Although the regulations were first published in July, they only came into force this week. The State Council said the measures are designed to protect “national sovereignty, security, and development interests.”
But experts caution that the rules hand Chinese authorities considerable discretion. Chong Ja Ian, a researcher at the National University of Singapore, told AFP that the language around security and criminal conduct is broad enough to be reinterpreted at will. He noted that outsiders will only get a clear sense of how the law is applied once real cases begin to surface.
Chong cited the case of Min Zin, a US citizen and political analyst, as an example of how expansive China’s exit-ban powers can be. Washington says Min Zin was detained in Yunnan province on June 3 and held without proper cause. Beijing pushed back on that account in August, insisting he was suspected of breaking Chinese law.
Chong warned that the Min Zin case illustrates just how wide — and potentially unpredictable — the pool of people affected by these exit restrictions could be.
Dylan Loh, an associate professor at Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, said the new rules send a clear signal: Beijing is prepared to act decisively against anyone it believes threatens national security or sensitive strategic interests.
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