Henan officials harass church members in order to destroy cross

(Pingdingshan, Henan—May 3, 2018) A dozen government officials arrived at a house church in China’s central Henan province on Saturday, demanding that the Christians present open the door so that they could demolish their cross.

One of the Christians said, “One officials in uniform was very insolent. I requested his ID card and documents, and then I intended to snap a picture as he showed it. He became very upset and even grabbed my phone … other Christians took pictures. I continually asked the officials which rules and regulations allowed them to remove the cross, but they didn’t answer my question. The told the other Christians that we did not register (our church), so it is illegal. They prohibited me from videotaping, although I told them that citizens had the right to monitor law enforcement.”

The church refused to allow the officials to destroy their cross.

Currently, Henan serves as one of the focal points for the Chinese government’s suppression of Christianity, with the government demolishing churches and crosses across the province. Their actions come after an order from the central government to “Sinicize” religion, or monitor and harass them into aligning with the ideals of the Communist Party, but this demand violates Chinese laws protecting religious freedom, which is enshrined in the nation’s Constitution.

ChinaAid exposes abuses, such as those suffered by Christians in Henan, in order to stand in solidarity with persecuted Christians and promote religious freedom, human rights, and rule of law.