Government Acts Against House Church Protestants During November

January 4, 2006

The Chinese government during November 2005 detained Protestant house church leaders, removed house church leaders from Beijing, sentenced a house church leader to imprisonment, and censored news media coverage of President Bush's message supporting religious freedom during his November 19-21 visit to Beijing, according to a number of news sources.

The Chinese government during November 2005 detained Protestant house church leaders, removed house church leaders from Beijing, sentenced a house church leader to imprisonment, and censored news media coverage of President Bush's message supporting religious freedom during his November 19-21 visit to Beijing, according to a number of news sources.

  • On November 18 officials detained house church leader Zhang Mingxuan and Zhang Chuang, his son, in Sheqi county, Henan province, according to a China Aid Association (CAA) report. CAA is a U.S. NGO that monitors the religious freedom of Chinese Protestants. Officials released the pair on November 21, according to another CAA report.
     
  • On November 17, officials removed house church leaders Hua Huiqi and Wei Jumei from Beijing, taking them to Chengdu in Sichuan province, according to a CAA report. On November 21, officials permitted the couple to return to Beijing but not to their home, according to another CAA report.
     
  • On November 8, the Beijing Haidian District People's Court sentenced Beijing house church pastor Cai Zhuohua and two of his relatives to prison for giving away Bibles.
     
  • On November 6, officials detained six house church Protestant leaders in Nantan village, Wuquan town, Wuyang county in Henan province. Officials released four of the leaders by November 7. The detentions came during a meeting at a church that CAA sources believe to be part of the Fangcheng Mother Church (also known as the China for Christ Church), which may be one of the biggest house churches in China, according to a July 31 Telegraph (London) report.
     
  • On November 3, officials detained approximately 100 house church members and 8 house church leaders in Huangfu town, Shangcai county in Henan province, according to a China Aid Association report. Officials reportedly tortured and injured two of the house church leaders, then released all of them on November 19, according to another CAA report.
     
  • AsiaNews characterized the Chinese news media as "practically silent" about President Bush's attendance at a Sunday service at the Protestant Gangwashi church in Beijing during his November 19-21 visit to China, covering it only in the English-language media, for example, in this November 22 China Daily article.

Many of the Chinese government actions involved house church Protestants from Henan province, where the house church movement is particularly strong, a fact conceded by a review published by the Amity News Service, which communicates the views of China's state-controlled registered Protestant church. A number of recent detentions of house church Protestants have occurred in Henan, including a series of detentions in May and June and July and August, and one detention in October.

In addition, a Washington Post article speculated that the Chinese government may have intended actions against house church leaders in Beijing as a warning to house church Protestants not to attempt to meet with President Bush during his November 19-21 visit to China. Although the Chinese government in the past frequently released prisoners of conscience before or after visits of foreign heads of state or senior officials, authorities released no prisoners of conscience in connection with President Bush’s November visit.

For more information on Protestants in China, see the CECC 2005 Annual Report, Section III(d).