US moves to restrict stay of Chinese journalists to 90 days

NewsBharati    26-Sep-2020 16:21:42 PM
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Washington DC, September 26: In a major development, United States Administration is seeking to restrict the stay of journalists from China in the US to just 90 days with the provision of another extension for a similar duration, according to a federal notification.
 
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The proposal of the Department of Homeland Security is part of the fixed time limit on visas of students, researchers, and foreign journalists in the US. Asper, the Notification the time limit for foreign journalists, in general, has been restricted to 240 days and another extension of a similar period, those for a journalist from China would be issued an I visa by the United States just for 90 days.
 
The notification said Foreign nationals traveling on a passport issued by China or Hong Kong would be issued I visa – which is the category for a foreign journalist – may be admitted until the “activities or assignments. Meanwhile, Passport holders from the Macau Special Administrative Region have been given exception. Moreover, Stakeholders have 30 days to respond to the federal notification before it can be enforced.
 
 
Foreign journalists and their dependents would have to leave the country immediately on the expiry of their I visa or denial of their extension application. Previously, foreign journalists were admitted to the US for the duration of their employment.
 
In March, the State Department asked Chinese media outlets to reduce their number of staff in the US. Four Chinese State-run media outlets -- Xinhua News Agency, China Global Television Network, China Radio International, and China Daily- were asked to reduce their total staff of 160 Chinese nationals to 100.
 
In June, the US designated four top state-run Chinese media houses as "foreign missions," terming them as "propaganda" outlets "controlled" by the ruling Communist Party of China. During mid-February. In June, the US designated four top state-run Chinese media houses as “foreign missions,” terming them as “propaganda” outlets “controlled” by the ruling Communist Party of China.
 
The US had designated five other Chinese state-run media houses. These nine entities all meet the definition of a foreign mission under the Foreign Missions Act, which is to say that they are substantially owned or effectively controlled by a foreign government, the State Department had said.