(Chengdu, Sichuan province）On June 6 at around noon, families from Early Rain Covenant Church were stopped from returning to their apartments. Security guards and others assaulted the Christians.
A Christian protest
On the evening of June 6, the apartment manager stopped Xu Haijun and his wife Jin Ying from entering his building. Other Christians living in the complex gathered to support the couple. Jin spoke to the developing crowd with a bullhorn speaker. ”They pressured the landlord simply because we are Christians,” she said. “As Christians, we are law-abiding citizens. We never missed or made late payments on our rent or utility bills. They don’t allow us to live here simply because of our religious beliefs.” Other Early Rain Covenant Church Christians shouted in agreement: ”We want to go home! We want to go home!”
Sharing the Gospel
All the Christians living in the apartment complex gathered at the entrance in the evening. They sang hymns and shared the gospel. When a female Christian called “Mana” explained to people that Early Rain was not a cult, police stopped her and tried to push her into a police car, injuring her.
Hired enforcers
Meanwhile, the apartment complex’s management office recruited some people to attack the Early Rain members. The hired thugs robbed some women of their cell phones and watches, beating and insulting them. An attorney who joined the demonstration was chased down and assaulted. The injured Christians called the police and waited more than half an hour but nobody showed up.
Ignored by police
After 7 PM, other Christians were also stopped from going home. They called the police but no police officer came. They went to Shuangliu District Jiujiang police station to seek help, but police officers ignored their request.
Constant persecution
Christians living in this apartment complex have been persecuted for several months. Before that, the staff of another apartment office stopped preacher Wu Wuqing’s family several times. His family is still prohibited from returning home. They wanted to move in some furniture on May 17, but security guards would not allow it. In the end, authorities threw it all away.
Arbitrary evictions
Since the end of February, Christians living in the complex faced constant, baseless evictions. Police officers and community workers threatened landlords to force several families to move. Managers canceled leases prematurely, forcing many Christians to move constantly. Many still struggle to find a place to live.
Prayers for the persecuted
Early Rain Covenant Church sent out a prayer request later that day. Surprisingly, security guards of the Languang Changdao apartment complex are entitled to the power to stop tenants from going back home. Police officers didn’t help Christians. “This is one of the most ridiculous and unlawful misconducts the government adopted against the church and Christians,” they wrote. “We urge fellow Christians to pray for Xu Haijun and his wife Jin Ying and pray for Early Rain Covenant Church. Please pray to God to lead our way out. Please also pray for Chengdu and China. If law enforcement continues to destroy the rule of law, and the government continues to abuse its power, not only Christians will suffer, but the whole country will face a dark future.”
~Yu Bing, China Aid Special Reporter
