Wang Zaiqing Presumed Released From Prison, Shi Weihan Detained in Separate Bible-Printing Cases

May 12, 2008

House church pastor Wang Zaiqing completed his two-year prison sentence for "illegal operation of a business" on April 27 and is presumed to have since been released from prison, according to information from the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) Political Prisoner Database.

House church pastor Wang Zaiqing completed his two-year prison sentence for "illegal operation of a business" on April 27 and is presumed to have since been released from prison, according to information from the Congressional-Executive Commission on China (CECC) Political Prisoner Database. Authorities in Huainan city, Anhui province, initially detained Wang on April 28, 2006, after he printed and distributed Bibles and other religious materials without government authorization. On October 9, 2006, the Tianjia'an District People's Court levied the two-year prison sentence on Wang and fined him 100,000 yuan (then approximately US$12,500).

In a separate development, authorities in Beijing detained bookstore owner Shi Weihan on March 19, 2008, in apparent connection to earlier activities involving the preparation and distribution of Bibles and other religious materials, according to an April 18 report from Compass Direct News. Authorities had first detained Shi on November 28, 2007, and accused him of illegally printing and distributing religious literature. After determining they had "insufficient evidence" to proceed, authorities released Shi on bail on January 4, 2008, and detained him again in March.

The cases of Wang Zaiqing and Shi Weihan reflect tight government control over the preparation and distribution of religious publications. Click here for a CECC analysis on China's regulation of religious materials. In recent years, authorities have penalized other citizens for their activities involving religious publications. In November 2005 authorities sentenced Pastor Cai Zhuohua to three years in prison for "illegal operation of a business" after he privately printed and gave away religious literature. In July 2007, authorities detained house church leader Zhou Heng and formally arrested him the following month for his alleged involvement in plans to receive and distribute religious literature. Authorities also accused him of "illegal operation of a business," but released him on February 19, 2008.

For more information, see Section II--Freedom of Religion in the CECC 2007 Annual Report (via the Government Printing Office Web site) and the CECC Political Prisoner Database.