(Shuangliao City, Jilin Province, China — September 4, 2025) Local authorities in Northeast China have recently banned a church organization known as “Zion Church,” citing its lack of registration and accusing it of conducting unauthorized activities in the name of a social organization and suspecting it of violating national laws and regulations.
On June 24, the Shuangliao City Civil Affairs Bureau issued a notice stating that “Zion Church” had not registered with the relevant authorities in charge and had unlawfully carried out activities in the name of a social organization, thus constituting an illegal social organization. The notice specified that the decision was made in accordance with Article 32 of the Regulations on the Registration and Administration of Social Organizations and Article 3 of the Measures for the Banning of Illegal Social Organizations.
“Upon review, it has been decided that this organization is to be banned in accordance with the law,” the notice read.
This decision reflects China’s ongoing efforts in recent years to tighten oversight of unregistered religious and social groups. Under current regulations, all religious organizations are required to register within government-approved administration systems and submit to oversight by the relevant departments. For instance, state-recognized Protestant churches must be affiliated with the Three-Self Patriotic Movement, while Catholic groups must join the Chinese Patriotic Catholic Association.
Although the notice did not mention the specific scale or activities of “Zion Church” in Shuangliao, China, many similar “house churches” that are not registered are frequently treated as illegal and subjected to bans, dispersals, or administrative penalties.
ChinaAid has long criticized the Chinese government’s restrictions on religious freedom, particularly its strict control over Christian groups. In recent years, Chinese authorities have intensified a broad campaign against so-called “illegal social organizations,” a category that includes unregistered religious groups, trade unions, and certain grassroots NGOs, which the government claims threaten “social stability” and “national unity.”
In February of this year, China’s Ministry of Civil Affairs issued the Measures for the banning of Illegal Social Organizations, further intensifying the crackdown on social organizations not registered with the relevant authorities.
As of now, Shuangliao officials have not disclosed whether the responsible persons of “Zion Church” will face additional legal actions or administrative penalties.
Reported by Special Correspondent Gao Zhensai for ChinaAid
