Latest news with #travelban
The Guardian
7 hours ago
- Politics
- The Guardian
Saudi Arabia accused of banning women's rights activists from leaving the country
Saudi Arabia is banning large numbers of its own citizens from leaving the country in a 'cruel' attempt to silence criticism, say human rights activists. High-profile women's rights campaigners, including Loujain al-Hathloul, who pushed for the right for women to drive in Saudi Arabia, and Maryam al-Otaibi, one of three sisters targeted by the authorities for their activism, appear to have been given long travel bans. These restrictions frequently extend to family members. The apparent crackdown comes at the same time as the country is encouraging international tourists to visit and its hosting of leading cultural and sporting events, including the 2034 men's Fifa World Cup. 'Saudi Arabia has really been in the spotlight over the imprisonment of political prisoners, including my sister. It was difficult to justify and brought negative PR. It is much easier for them to have travel bans to control people,' said Lina al-Hathloul, an activist and sister of Loujain. '[These travel bans] are a new tactic to not only silence critics, but to make sure the people around them that could be their voice are also silenced. It's a collective punishment on the family,' she added. After being released from prison, many political and women's rights activists are being given long travel bans. These are either publicly announced by a court or revealed when a person tries to leave the country and is barred from doing so by border officials. The human rights organisation ALQST (al-qist means 'justice' in Arabic) has published a list of 20 individuals under what it describes as 'cruel and unlawful' court-imposed travel bans, but says there are likely to be many more subject to unofficial bans. Loujain's prison sentence included a travel ban on release of two years and 10 months, which was due to expire on 12 November 2023. Since then she has remained unable to travel, said ALQST, despite having received no formal notification from the authorities of any new ban, either judicial or administrative. 'They [former prisoners] can be seen in public life, which gives the impression of freedom to the outside world. But the authorities and the former prisoner know very well that they have to live in constant self-censorship, not able to voice their opinions, concerns or prison experiences,' said Lina. In a response to UN requests for information, Saudi officials said that Loujain al-Hathloul and Maryam al-Otaibi were not subject to any restrictions 'other than those set out in the final court judgment handed down to Loujain al-Hathloul, prohibiting her from travelling abroad for the period of time stipulated in the judgment, and in the administrative decision issued by the competent authority prohibiting Maryam al-Otaibi from travelling abroad'.
NHK
2 days ago
- Business
- NHK
US govt. employee banned from leaving China
The US State Department says an employee of the Patent and Trademark Office who made a personal visit to China has been barred from leaving the country. A State Department spokesperson told NHK on Monday, "We are tracking this case very closely and are engaged with Chinese officials to resolve the situation as quickly as possible." The Patent and Trademark Office is a federal agency under the US Department of Commerce. The Washington Post has reported that the employee is a Chinese American man, who traveled to China several months ago to visit family. The paper said the man is being prevented from leaving China after he failed to disclose on his visa application that he worked for the US government. A female executive of major US bank Wells Fargo has also been blocked from leaving China. A Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Monday that the woman "is involved in a criminal case currently being handled by Chinese law-enforcement authorities and is subject to exit restrictions." The spokesperson added that "anyone, Chinese and foreigners alike, should abide by Chinese laws in China." Reuters news agency said Wells Fargo has suspended all employee travel to China in response to the incident.
Bloomberg
3 days ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
State Department Confirms China Barred US Citizen From Leaving
The US State Department confirmed that a US Patent and Trademark Office employee has been barred from leaving China, and said officials were working to resolve the situation. The department said the employee was 'made subject to an exit ban' while traveling in China 'in a personal capacity.'
New York Times
4 days ago
- Business
- New York Times
China Exit Ban on Wells Fargo Executive Stokes Foreign Business Anxiety
China has sentenced a Japanese executive to more than three years in prison and blocked a U.S.-based Wells Fargo banker from returning home, the latest in a series of episodes that have made leaders of multinational corporations leery of traveling to China. Economic policy ministries in China have been trying to persuade multinationals to increase their investment in China. That is an effort that the exit ban and prison sentence are likely to make harder, especially because foreign enthusiasm was already waning. A real estate crash has depressed consumer spending; regulatory obstacles hamper sales in China by foreign companies; and many industries face severe overcapacity. China has said little about either executive. Eric Zheng, the president of the American Chamber of Commerce in Shanghai, called for the release of more details in the Wells Fargo case in order to reassure the foreign business community. Wells Fargo has suspended travel by its executives to China. Many Japanese companies have already been limiting travel to China and have been withdrawing family members of managers stationed in China. Sean Stein, the president of the U.S.-China Business Council, said that if more information did not emerge soon in the Wells Fargo case, other American businesses might also discourage their executives from going to China. 'In cases like this, transparency is extremely important, or else there will be a spillover effect on other companies' travel policies,' he said in a telephone interview. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
ABC News
6 days ago
- Politics
- ABC News
North Korea bans foreign tourists to newly opened beach resort
North Korea is banning the entry of foreign tourists to a recently opened mega-beach resort. It is a move that dims prospects for the complex that leader Kim Jong Un hailed as "one of the greatest successes this year". DPR Korea Tour, a website run by North Korea's tourism authority, said in a notice on Friday that the eastern coastal Wonsan-Kalma tourist complex "is temporarily not receiving foreign tourists". It gave no further details, including why a ban was established or how long it would last. North Korea said the complex could accommodate nearly 20,000 guests. The resort opened to domestic tourists on July 1 before receiving a small group of Russian tourists last week. Observers expected North Korea to open the resort to Chinese tourists while largely blocking other international tourists. The announcement came after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov flew to the complex to meet Mr Kim and Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui for talks last weekend. North Korea and Russia have sharply expanded military and other cooperation in recent years, with North Korea supplying weapons and troops to back Russia's war against Ukraine. During a meeting with Mr Choe, Mr Lavrov promised to take steps to support Russian travel to the zone. "I am sure that Russian tourists will be increasingly eager to come here," he said But experts said North Korea likely decided to halt foreign tourist visits to the zone because of a newspaper article by a Russian reporter who travelled with Mr Lavrov that implied North Koreans at the zone appeared to be mobilised by authorities and not real tourists. "The North Korean government is believed to have determined that it would face some negative consequences when it opens the site to foreigners," said Oh Gyeong-seob, an analyst at Seoul's Korea Institute for National Unification. Mr Oh said the ban would include Russians, but the North Korea-focused NK News website, citing tour groups specialising in North Korea trips, said Russians won't likely be targeted. Analyst Lee Sangkeun of Seoul's Institute for National Security Strategy said the ban could be associated with difficulties in recruiting Russian tourists because many would consider North Korea too far away and the trip too expensive. Experts say North Korea must open the Wonsan-Kalma zone, the country's biggest tourist complex, to Russian and Chinese tourists, given what was likely a huge construction and operational expenditure from the country's tight budget. "If foreign tourists aren't allowed to the site, no Russian rubles, Chinese yuans and dollars won't come in. "Then, North Korea can't break even and it has to shut down the resort," said Ahn Chan-il, head of the World Institute for North Korean Studies think tank in Seoul. Mr Kim has said the site would be "one of the greatest successes this year" and "the proud first step" in tourism development. North Korea's state media reports the Wonsan-Kalma site has been crowded with local tourists. The first group of 15 Russian tourists arrived in the resort on July 11 after visiting Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, NK News reported earlier this week. "It was magnificent. Everything is new, clean and stunning," Russian tourist Nina Svirida said in the report. North Korea has been slowly easing the curbs imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic and reopening its borders in phases. But the country hasn't said if it would fully resume international tourism. Chinese group tours, which made up more than 90 per cent of visitors before the pandemic, remain stalled. In February, North Korea allowed a small group of international tourists to visit the north-eastern city of Rason, only to stop the program after less than a month. AP
