06/30/2022 China (International Christian Concern) – The wife of detained Preacher An Yankui has reported that her husband was finally able to meet with his attorney for the first time since being detained.
The minister had not previously met with his attorney due to pandemic concerns.
The preacher and another church coworker, Zhang Chenghao, were detained in November after traveling to Malaysia in 2020 for a global Christian conference. They were joined by five other Christians who had traveled to Malaysia for the event. The five Christians were arrested before Minister An and Mr. Zhang in July. Even though everyone traveled with passports officiated by the People’s Republic of China Ministry of Public Security, the Christians were all declared guilty of “illegal border crossing.”
The ruling was based on the Administrative Measures for Religious Staff, which was put into effect on May 1, 2021. The measures stipulate that attending religious organizations’ conferences and meetings abroad is illegal. The fact that the Christians had traveled to Malaysia in January 2020, four months before the above measure was established, questions the legitimacy of their imprisonment.
As of June 23, the minister and his attorney have finally met at Xiaoyi Detention Center located in the northern Chinese province of Shanxi. According to the attorney, Preacher An remains in good spirits but worries over his family and fellow congregation members at Zion Reformed Church.
Minister An Yankui’s wife asked Christians to intercede for her family. She said their family had been apart for a long while, but “we’ve experienced God’s work while being separated from him. An Yankui is never isolated from the Lord’s Word while being jailed. God is with us, protects us, and comforts us no matter where we are. Thank you all for your company and prayers in the past few days. May the Lord continue to lead us, and may each of our steps show his justice and glory!”
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