ICC Note: This report details yet another example of the harassment faced by Chinese Christians at the hands of local authorities. Persecution of this type has increased dramatically over the past year in all parts of China. Meanwhile, the central government dares to publish a white paper on the country’s “progress” in human rights.
By Rachel Ritchie
06/17/2015 China (China Aid)
Police in China’s southwestern Sichuan province detained a house church member after a church gathering on Sunday; the man was sentenced to 10 days in administrative detention. Police also detained two other church members for a few hours the previous Sunday, June 7.
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“We visited the police station, but the police asked us to leave without giving us any explanation. Around 6 p.m., Luo’s family was informed in a phone call that he will be detained for 10 days. Luo’s wife asked police why he was being detained, but the police wouldn’t tell her. They told her ‘You’ll know soon enough.’ When his wife visited him on Tuesday, he told her that after he arrived at the detention center, the police didn’t ask him any questions,” Li said.
Li said police later informed Luo’s wife, Nian, that he was suspected of participating in “illegal activities.”
“The detention notice didn’t list any significant information,” Nian said. “It only said that he will be detained for 10 days and will be released on June 24. He told me that he was walking home on the street after he got out of the church service. The police were going to detain two other church members, but they ran away so the police took Luo instead.”
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Langzhong House Church, home to more than 1,000 church members, has encountered persecution as far back as 2011. Most recently, nine Christians were placed under administrative detention for sentences ranging from 10-15 days for “engaging in religious activities” to “disrupt public order” following the raid of their Sunday service in January. More than 20 church members were initially taken into custody; however, the other 11 Christians were released after a few hours of “education.”
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