Taipei, Taiwan — Sept. 3, 2026 — A Beijing lawyer who represented detained leaders of Beijing Zion Church has fled mainland China with her husband and two young children and arrived in Taiwan, as the church’s remaining eight leaders await further proceedings in a case that has drawn international attention.
Lawyer Wang Xiahong, also known as Ruth Wang, is a partner at Beijing’s Vdoor Law Firm. According to information obtained by ChinaAid and reporting by the Associated Press, Wang and her family left China because of concerns about increasing government pressure related to her legal work and representation of detained Beijing Zion Church leaders.
The family arrived at Taiwan’s Taoyuan International Airport and is seeking protection from Taiwanese authorities. Taiwan is a self-governing island southeast of mainland China’s coast.
The development comes as the so-called “Zion 8” case remains unresolved. Chinese authorities detained leaders and members of Beijing Zion Church during a large-scale crackdown that began in October 2025. Their scheduled Aug. 14–18 trial was later delayed after defense lawyers objected that they had insufficient time to review the case files.
The eight church leaders face charges including fraud and illegal business operations stemming from their church ministry and sale of online religious courses, allegations the church has rejected.
The church’s founder, Pastor Ezra Jin, was detained during the October 2025 crackdown and later released after nine months in detention following high-level diplomatic engagement between Washington and Beijing. The remaining eight defendants are being held at Beihai Detention Center in Guangxi Province in southern China.
ChinaAid said Wang’s departure is linked to her representation of Zion Church leaders and concerns that she could face retaliation, including arrest. The organization also said Wang’s law firm faced significant government pressure and was forced to cease operations.
Because the situation is developing and because of concerns for Wang and her family’s safety, ChinaAid said it will not disclose specific details about their departure or other sensitive information.
Lawyer’s involvement in Zion Church case
Wang previously represented clients detained during the Chinese government’s crackdown on Beijing Zion Church. The church was an unregistered Protestant congregation that operated outside China’s state-sanctioned Three-Self Patriotic Movement.
ChinaAid said Wang’s departure illustrates the pressure facing lawyers who defend clients in politically and religiously sensitive cases. The organization said retaliation against defense lawyers threatens both access to legal representation and the independence of China’s legal system.
In a statement, Pastor Dr. Bob Fu, founder and president of ChinaAid, called Wang’s departure “a wake-up call to the entire international community,” saying the case demonstrates the pressure faced by lawyers who defend persecuted Christians and other prisoners of conscience.
“All that Lawyer Wang Xiahong did was fulfill the most basic professional responsibility of a lawyer,” Fu said, referring to her representation of people detained by Chinese authorities. He said her involvement in cases involving Zion Church leaders led her to fear that she could become a target herself.
Fu urged Taiwan, the United States and other democratic governments to protect Wang and her family. “Do not send them back to the government they were forced to flee,” he said.
ChinaAid is calling on Taiwan to provide Wang and her family with immediate safety and legal support while seeking a longer-term solution that would allow the family to remain together.
Founded in 2002, ChinaAid is an international Christian human rights organization committed to promoting religious freedom and the rule of law in China through advocacy, legal support, and international awareness campaigns.