The sudden reversal of immigration policy by President Biden of the United States has restricted asylum seekers from entering the country. With the deteriorating economic and political situation in China, a large number of Chinese people are risking their lives to enter the US through illegal means. Most of the undocumented Chinese immigrants are young singles, posing a “significant threat” to US national security.
On June 4, President Joe Biden signed a new executive order at the White House to restrict the control of undocumented immigrants at the US-Mexico border. The new law states that if the number of illegal immigrants at the US border exceeds 2,500 within a week, asylum applications will be temporarily suspended. This measure aims to prevent a large influx of illegal immigrants, with those who trespass being either deported or repatriated. The restrictions do not apply to unaccompanied minors, and the border can only be reopened when the number drops below 1,500 for a continuous week. The processing of political asylum applications will resume once the threshold is met, making the order temporary.
Subsequently, the federal government publicly admitted that the executive order effective on the 5th had loopholes. Due to budget and authority constraints, not all undocumented immigrants without papers could be repatriated, especially those from countries such as America, Asia, Africa, and Europe that have recently seen a large number of migrants at the border. Consequently, just over ten hours after the executive order took effect, undocumented immigrants from China, India, Colombia, Ecuador, and other countries were released and allowed to enter the US.
The influx of illegal immigrants entering the country has also drawn the attention of US officials. Previously, several Republican senators jointly wrote to the Department of Homeland Security, warning that over 18,000 Chinese citizens had illegally crossed the southern border since 2023, most of whom were young singles, posing a “significant threat” to US national security.
Among the Republican senators who signed the joint letter were Roger Marshall from Kansas, Mike Braun from Indiana, Pete Ricketts from Nebraska, Marco Rubio from Florida, and Thom Tillis from North Carolina. They expressed concerns that these illegal Chinese immigrants could potentially engage in “espionage activities or carry out cyberattacks against critical infrastructure, government agencies, or private sectors.”
Following the lifting of the strict pandemic containment policies imposed by the Chinese Communist Party in recent years, many Chinese people have lost faith in the government due to the worsening economic and political environment. As a result, they have been using various means to escape China, with a significant number choosing to flee to the United States through risky means like smuggling.
According to data from the US Customs and Border Protection, the number of Chinese immigrants temporarily detained after illegally crossing the southern US border has exceeded 24,000 in the 2023 fiscal year. This figure is significantly higher compared to less than 15,000 such cases in the past decade.
Even during the height of the pandemic in China, 1,311 Chinese citizens managed to enter the Darien Gap in Panama from January to November 2022, seeking to escape the country.
In their joint letter, the Republican senators also mentioned that there is a substantial amount of evidence showing that under the guidance of the Chinese Communist Party, Chinese nationals engage in espionage activities to steal military and economic secrets. They also emphasized the role of the CCP in providing precursor chemicals to Mexican drug cartels, which are used to manufacture fentanyl and subsequently smuggled into the US.
Renowned author Gordon G. Chang, who published “The Coming Collapse of China” in 2001, highlighted the threat posed by the influx of Chinese immigrants entering the US. In an interview with Voice of America last October, Chang warned that the US is facing invasion by the CCP, with some Chinese nationals entering the country through the southern border likely affiliated with the Chinese military. Border patrol agencies are aware that a small number of Chinese immigrants have clear connections to the CCP military.
Chang also noted that these Chinese men of enlistment age, traveling in groups of 5 to 15 without family members and pretending not to speak English, resemble strike teams affiliated with the CCP. Their activities upon entering the US raise concerns about potential disruptive behavior.
On March 29, the US Border Patrol received a report from a Marine Corps base in California indicating that an unnamed Chinese citizen “illegally entered the base” and “ignored orders to leave.” This individual was confirmed to have entered the US illegally, and investigations regarding the purpose and intent of this action are ongoing.
The US Marine Corps base breached by the Chinese citizen is located in El Centro, Imperial County, Southern California. The base spans 410 square miles and has been in existence for nearly a century, sharing a 70-mile border with Mexico in the Imperial Valley. The US Border Patrol has command centers in four cities in this region.
In recent years, numerous incidents of unauthorized entry by Chinese citizens or tourists have occurred at various US military bases. Some individuals have been cautioned, fined, sentenced to prison, or deported. However, the CCP denies these individuals are spies or agents.
In fact, Chinese state media have openly acknowledged the surge in Chinese nationals illegally traveling to the US, presenting a challenge for American society. Reports mention a documentary produced by CBS’s “60 Minutes” focusing on Chinese migrants. The program highlighted that Chinese illegal immigrants have become one of the fastest-growing groups entering the US from the Mexican border in recent years. These migrants, unlike the traditional image of destitute and ragged illegal immigrants, appear well-dressed, hand-carrying luggage, including middle-class individuals, small business owners, and bankers.
Following the broadcast, many American citizens expressed skepticism, noting the branded attire, use of the latest Apple devices, and pristine cleanliness of these migrants’ shoes. Their appearance contradicted the image of impoverished travelers trekking great distances, leading some American internet users to speculate that there may be red espionage agents infiltrating among them.
A Chinese individual, going by the pseudonym Zhou Hai, who entered the US illegally in October of the previous year, shared with a media outlet about his motives for leaving China. Zhou, formerly working in the education and training industry in China, lost his job after the closure of such facilities due to the pandemic. He felt hopeless after being interrogated by local authorities regarding reporting the mishandling of nucleic acid tests and being falsely diagnosed with COVID-19, leading to his isolation. Faced with restrictions on expressing oneself and continuous government crackdown, Zhou found an opportunity to escape through a friend who facilitated the journey, despite the arduous and perilous journey of illegal border crossing.
Zhou expressed a sense of freedom upon reaching the US, being able to speak freely without fear of police intervention for non-illegal activities. However, he also shared the melancholy of not being able to return to visit his sick elderly family members in China, reflecting on the struggle between pursuing freedom and feeling the sorrow of being separated from loved ones.
Chinese human rights activist Li Qing recounted her journey of escaping mainland China and successfully entering the US in June after trekking through the South American borders. Li, a former worker at a Yamaha musical instrument factory in Hangzhou, suffered severe health issues due to exposure to dust at work. Despite standing up for her rights since 2008 and facing several detentions, unlawful imprisonments, and even sentencing, Li’s husband was brutally attacked during their advocacy work, leading to his murder and falsifying her signature for her husband’s cremation.
In a situation with no way out, Li learned about the route to the US through illegal means and embarked on the journey. She mentioned that if she were still in China, she would have ended up in prison, making the choice between jail and freedom clear. Despite the hardships along the path to freedom, Li highlighted the challenges she faced on her journey.
Mexican authorities announced on March 29 that the bodies of eight Chinese citizens, including seven women and one man, were found on a beach in Oaxaca in southwestern Mexico. The victims were on a vessel that capsized and sank along a popular migratory route, attempting to reach the US.
Over the past two years, there has been a significant increase in the number of Chinese nationals using unauthorized routes to travel. The number of Chinese citizens detained in the US-Mexico border region in 2023 exceeded 37,000, a fifty-fold increase from 2021.