(Hengyang, Hunan Province – April 1, 2024) According to a prayer request letter signed by “Brother Chen Wensheng’s co-workers,” the trial of Christian Chen Wensheng from Hengyang, Hunan Province, who is accused of “organizing and funding illegal gatherings” due to his years of evangelism in the streets, will be held at 9:00 am on March 27, 2024.
On August 29, 2023, Chen Wensheng intended to take a flight from Shanghai to Jeju Island, South Korea. However, he was intercepted by authorities at the Shanghai International Airport and sent back to Hengyang, Hunan Province. Upon returning to Hengyang, Chen Wensheng was taken to the police station and was given a 15-day administrative detention penalty. After the administrative detention ended on September 18, the Shigu Branch of the Hengyang Public Security Bureau once again detained Chen Wensheng on suspicion of “organizing and funding illegal gatherings,” and he was held in custody at the Hengdong County Detention Center. On October 25, 2023, Chen Wensheng was formally arrested by the Shigu Branch of the Hengyang Public Security Bureau on suspicion of “organizing and funding illegal gatherings,” and he was detained at the Hengdong Detention Center.
Chen Wensheng is a Christian from the Xiaoqun Church in Hengyang. Before his conversion, he had been involved in drug use and drug trafficking for over a decade, leading to multiple incarcerations. However, he encountered the Gospel while in a drug rehabilitation center and became a Christian, successfully overcoming his drug addiction. Since his release from prison in 2001, he has been zealous in evangelism. Often seen carrying a cross with phrases like “Glory to the Savior” and “Repent and Believe to be Saved,” he, along with other Christians from his church, followed the example of the apostles, spreading the Gospel in Hengyang, and other parts of China, and even abroad, including Tibet, Yunnan Province, and Southeast Asia countries.
According to a national security agent, Chen Wensheng had engaged in evangelism outside his hometown over a thousand times, averaging four to five times a month. As a result of his activities, he has been detained numerous times, facing six detentions in 2021 alone. His family has also faced threats such as job loss and denial of education opportunities. Chen Wensheng has expressed his readiness to continue spreading the Gospel even if it means imprisonment.
In the summer of 2023, authorities began summoning several Christians close to Chen Wensheng, using tactics such as deception and intimidation to coerce them into accusing him. One Christian couple, for instance, openly accused Chen Wensheng of being a “Judas.” Police officers also deceived another Christian, falsely claiming that Chen Wensheng was shifting blame and denying his role in organizing street evangelism, instead accusing this individual of being the organizer while portraying Chen Wensheng himself as merely a participant. Additionally, another Christian, unable to withstand police intimidation during a home visit, succumbed to pressure and signed a statement accusing Chen Wensheng.
Chen Wensheng had previously stated that he wouldn’t hire a lawyer to defend himself, so the local government appointed two legal aid lawyers for him. Recently, Chen Wensheng’s wife, Mo Xiaoju, visited him. It’s been reported that he appeared radiant and joyful. He mentioned that he had been spreading the Gospel to everyone in the detention center and expressed his desire to be transferred to another facility so he could continue preaching the Gospel there.
