Dissident Chinese artist Ai Weiwei said on Thursday that Britain had denied his application for a six-month visa in favour of one with a shorter duration, telling him that he had not declared a previous “criminal conviction”.
The denial of a longer-term visa comes three months before President Xi Jinping visits Britain and could fuel criticism of Prime Minister David Cameron's government, which has been accused of putting trade before human rights in dealing with China.
Ai has never been charged with, or convicted of, a crime.
In 2011, the Chinese government said Ai remained under investigation on suspicion of economic crimes after he was released on bail. Ai said previously that he had not received a formal notice to explain “suspected economic crimes”.
Authorities in Beijing returned Ai's passport last week, more than four years after it was confiscated following his 81-day secret detention.
A letter issued by the UK Visas and Immigration Department that Ai posted on Instagram said Ai had not declared that he had “previously received a criminal conviction in China”.
Reuters was unable to immediately verify the authenticity of the letter. In a statement provided by the British embassy in Beijing, a Foreign and Commonwealth Office spokesperson denied that the decision to reject Ai's application for a six-month visa was driven by fears that he could be in Britain at the same time as the Chinese president. Xi is due to visit London in October.
“Mr Ai has been granted a visa to enable him to travel to the UK for the full travel duration he requested, and we are pleased that he will be able to attend his exhibition at the Royal Academy.” Ai said he was given a visa to travel to Britain from September 9-29 but added that he “may not be able to attend the exhibition installation and opening” of a retrospective of his work at London's Royal Academy of Arts that month. The exhibition is due to open on September 19, according to the Royal Academy's website.
Ai could not be reached for comment. He told Reuters earlier that he was headed on an afternoon flight to Munich in Germany. “This decision is a denial of Ai Weiwei's rights as an ordinary citizen,” Ai said on Instagram.
China's Foreign Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.