On October 2, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services issued a policy manual to “address inadmissibility based on membership in or affiliation with the Communist Party or any other totalitarian party. Membership in or affiliation with the Communist Party or any other totalitarian party is inconsistent and incompatible with the Naturalization Oath of Allegiance to the United States of America, which includes pledging to ‘support and defend the Constitution and laws of the United States.’” The policy also states that “unless otherwise exempt, any intending immigrant who is a member or an affiliate of the Communist Party or any other totalitarian party (or subdivision or affiliate), domestic or foreign, is inadmissible to the United States.”
The past immigration laws have regulations on the immigration of Communists and members of totalitarian political parties. The latest guidelines mainly indicate that the requirements of the federal immigration law must be strictly enforced. They clearly stipulate that Communists and related personnel should be prevented from obtaining immigration or permanent resident status in the U.S.
It has been reported that some Chinese immigrants and students studying in the U.S. have gone through the procedures to withdraw from the Communist Party through relevant means. Such means include proving proof that they have withdrawn from the Communist Party through a newspaper.
Since the beginning of this year, the conflicts and disputes between the U.S. and China over issues such as the trade war, COVID 19, Huawei, and Hong Kong have escalated step by step. In addition, in recent years, many Chinese scholars and international students have stolen U.S. technology secrets, forcing the U.S. to launch a series of espionage cases. Sanctions contain the gradual tightening of visas for certain individuals and international students. In early July, citing violations of human rights, the U.S. Department of the Treasury added four Chinese officials, including Xinjiang Party Secretary Chen Quanguo, to the sanctions list, banning them from entry into the U.S. and freezing their assets.
Washington’s recent sanctions target not only high-ranking officials in the Chinese government, but also personnel from key companies and organizations. U.S. Secretary of State Pompeo stated on July 15 that the U.S. will “impose visa restrictions on certain employees of Chinese technology companies like Huawei that provide material support to regimes engaging in human rights violations and abuses globally.” Prior to this, the U.S. began to impose visa restrictions on China’s official media reporters. At the beginning of June, the U.S. also announced that it would no longer issue graduate visas to international students related to the Chinese military, and that visas already issued will also become invalid.
Source: Voice of America, October 3, 2020
https://www.voachinese.com/a/USCIS-new-policy-guidance-indamissiblity-based-on-party-membership-20201003/5607582.html