(Sichuan, China—March 27, 2023) Authorities administratively detained four coworkers of a house church in Guangyuan City, Sichuan Province. All of them were arrested for “organizing an illegal gathering” and given a 12-day detention.
The four arrested Christians
The four Christians included Zhang Li, Zhang Dongmei, a female Christian named Mu, and a male Christian named Zhang. Further details about the case are unavailable at this point.
Charges used against Christians
China’s government concocts various pretexts in efforts to crack down on house churches in China. They have fabricated all kinds of new charges such as “fraud”, “illegally crossing the national border,” “organizing illegal gatherings,” and many others.
“organizing illegal gatherings”
Police started charging Christians with “organizing illegal gatherings” two years ago. People who are incarcerated on this charge include Geng Zejun—a minister of the Church of the Rock in Ningxia province— and Wang Shunping and Nu Sang Deng—ministers of Nu ethnicity in Yunnan province.
Church does not disrupt social order
Christians’ Sunday worship has never been deemed a crime by any secular laws in the past 2,000 years, and Chinese laws do not ban Christians from worshipping at home. Also, Christians must attend worship on Sundays, and it doesn’t disrupt social order. It is absurd to equalize it to “crime” or as a potential danger to society.
The authority’s real purpose is to strip Chinese citizens of the freedom of religion granted by the People’s Republic of China’s Constitution Article 36.
~Yu Bing, ChinaAid Contributing Reporter
