General
28.03.2025 – China’s national religious groups joint conference: “Preach the two sessions”
Bitter Winter – The important gathering of the government-controlled religious bodies called for an emphasis on the latest documents of the regime in sermons and study groups.
The “Two Sessions” of the National People’s Congress (NPC) and the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) were held in Beijing from March 4 to 11. Xi Jinping put the emphasis of the meetings in reinforcing China’s economy and military might within the context of a volatile international situation. Among the draft laws announced, a couple deal with reinforcing ethnic unity, fighting separatism, and standardize the use of Mandarin language in all provinces and regions.
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23.03.2025 – Radio Free Asia: An appeal to the US Congress
Bitter Winter – The radio and its website perform an essential function in exposing the crimes of the CCP both in China and internationally. It should continue its precious work.
We publish as a document, with authorization and without the name of the drafter, a letter that was sent to all US senators and representatives about the threatened closure of Radio Free Asia, which has been celebrated by the CCP as a move highly beneficial to Chinese propaganda.
Catholics
21.03.2025 – Shanghai Catholics rededicate two churches closed for decades
ucanews – Catholics in the Shanghai diocese reclaimed two 19th-century churches when their bishop re-consecrated and dedicated them to St.Joseph, whose feast the Catholic Church observes on March 19.
Bishop Joseph Shen Bin of Shanghai re-consecrated the St. Joseph Church in Tianma, in Songjiang district, on March 16, in the presence of some 1,000 Catholics, reported Vatican agency Fides.The Tianma church was built in 1850. At the time, Canossian nuns managed a hospital attached to the Church.
Buddhists
17.03.2025 – Why the choice of the next Dalai Lama is such a sensitive issue for Beijing
simp.com – The Dalai Lama has been in exile in India since the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) crushed an armed uprising in Tibet in 1959.
As he approaches his 90th birthday in July, the controversy over his successor is expected to reignite, with possible implications for social stability and China’s relations with the United States and India.
According to Tibetan Buddhist tradition, the Dalai Lama will be reincarnated and he has repeatedly said he would resolve the issue this year.
In a new book published this month, he hinted that his successor would be born outside China – a proposal swiftly rejected by Beijing which described him as “a political exile who uses religion as a cover for anti-China secessionist activities and has no right to represent the Tibetan people”.
Falun Gong
30.03.2025 – Having served ten years for his faith, 47-year-old man gets another 1.5 years in prison
Minghui – A 47-year-old Dalian City, Liaoning Province resident was recently sentenced to 1.5 years for his faith in Falun Gong.
Mr. Wang Hongwei was arrested by officers from the Malan Police Station on July 13, 2024. The Shahekou District Police Branch put him in criminal detention at the Dalian City Detention Center (located in Yaojia Town). His father, in his 70s, traveled from their hometown in Qingyuan County (also located in Liaoning Province, about 300 miles away) to the Malan Police Station multiple times to seek his release and to have his confiscated computer and Falun Gong books returned, but to no avail.
26.03.2025 – After serving 8 months for practicing Falun Gong, former head nurse now has her pension suspended
Minghui – A former head nurse in Huaian City, Jiangsu Province, had her pension suspended on January 6, 2025. She was also ordered to return the 359,000 yuan pension she received since August 2020.
Ms. Li Jiuping, in her 60s, was targeted because she practices Falun Gong. She was arrested on August 6, 2020, after being followed by plainclothes officers while distributing informational materials about Falun Gong. Due to her high blood pressure, she was released on bail that evening.
Prosecutor Zhang Tao of the Qingjiangpu District Procuratorate indicted Ms. Li in late April 2021. She appeared in the Qingjiangpu District Court on July 13, 2021 and was later sentenced to eight months by judges Cai Hongzhi and Zhao Ye.
21.03.2025 – Heilongjiang Retiree Sentenced to 3.5 Years for Practicing Falun Gong
Minghui – Ms. Zhao Lanying from Mudanjiang City, Heilongjiang Province was sentenced to three and a half years on February 20, 2025 for practicing Falun Gong.
Ms. Zhao who is a retired railway worker, was arrested in her rental place in Harbin (the capital city of Heilongjiang, about 200 miles away from Mudanjiang) on September 20, 2024. When her lawyer visited her, she told him that she fainted once after her arrest and that the police interrogated her three times. They produced photos and videos depicting a woman distributing Falun Gong information materials and ordered her to say she was that woman.
Protestants
31.03.2025 – Bengbu Living Stone Reformed Church: Pastor sentenced to five years in jail
Bitter Winter – In 2023, “Bitter Winter” reported on the arrest and prosecution of Pastor Wan Changchun of Living Stone Reformed Church, a house church in Bengbu, Anhui, and several co-workers.
On March 27, 2025, Pastor Wan was sentenced to five years in prison. Three co-workers were sentenced to jail terms between two and two and a half years but the sentences were suspended, while Wan remains in prison.
In April 2023, Bitter Winter reported that on April 11 Pastor Wang Changchun was arrested while he was traveling in Lijiang, Yunnan, and taken back to the prison of his home city of Bengbu.
27.03.2025 – Hui Christian pastor sentenced to nine months in prison
csw – Hui Christian Pastor Ma Yan was sentenced to nine months in prison for ‘organising illegal gatherings’ by the Yinchuan Railway Transportation Court in China’s Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region on 24 March.
Ma was charged and tried on 10 February 2025 for organising a gathering of no more than ten Christians in Jinfeng District, Yinchuan, Ningxia, which was raided by police officers on 9 August 2024. CSW sources suggested that Ma pleaded guilty during the trial because the charge of ‘organising illegal gatherings’ carries a lighter sentence compared to other charges and does not attract moral stigmatisation.
The US-based rights organisation China Aid reports that Ma’s sentence will be offset by 32 days of previous administrative detentions, and that since he has been criminally detained since 20 August 2024, he will be released on 17 April.
27.03.2025 – Expanding the notion of Xie Jiao in China: now even reformed christians are “cultists”
Bitter Winter – The case of Fuyang Maizhong Reformed Church confirms that the category of “organizations promoting heterodox teachings” may be expanded at the authorities’ will.
Readers of “Bitter Winter” are familiar with the controversies about the label “xie jiao.” Being active in (“using”) a “xie jiao” is punished by Article 300 of China’s Criminal Code with heavy jail penalties. “Xie jiao” is translated in China’s official English-language documents as “evil cults.” However, the translation is somewhat misleading as the expression has been used since the Middle Ages and literally means “organizations promoting heterodox teachings.”
26.03.2025 – Xi’an Pastor Chang Yuguang, wife still under strict detention conditions
Bitter winter – Last week, the son of Pastor Chang Yuguang (also known as Chang Yuchun) and his wife Li Chenhui of Xi’an, Shaanxi province, circulated a letter among human rights organizations, excerpts of which we reproduce below.
Pastor Chang and his wife were arrested on July 21, 2020, and charged with “illegal business operations” for printing Christian books without authorization. Their printing company was duly registered with the authorities but religious books require a specific authorization.
On August 19, 2021 the Xi’an Gaoling District Court sentenced them to seven years in jail. On November 15, 2021, the sentence was confirmed by the Appeal Court.
25.03.2025 – China’s religious freedom crisis escalates: Christian churches face comprehensive suppression
Bitter Winter – In recent years, the Chinese government has intensified its persecution of religious minority groups, reaching a new peak in 2024. The Ministry of Public Security of China has publicly celebrated its crackdown on groups labeled as xie jiao on social media and state-controlled platforms, labeling independent religious groups such as Christian house churches as threats. “Xie jiao” is translated by the Chinese government itself in its English-language documents as “evil cults,” but in fact is a label used since the Middle Ages meaning “organizations spreading heterodox teachings.”
25.03.2025 – Ningxia Yinchuan house church preacher Ma Yan convicted of “organising illegal gatherings” and sentenced to 9 months.
China Aid – It is reported that on March 24, 2025, Ma Yan, a house church preacher from Yinchuan City, Ningxia Province, was tried and publicly sentenced for the alleged crime of “organizing illegal gathering” at the Yinchuan Railway Transportation Court. The court sentenced him to 9 months in prison, which will be offset by 32 days of previous administrative detentions. Therefore, Preacher Ma Yan will reunite with his family on April 17, 2025. Ma Yan was detained on August 20, 2024, and after his first trial on February 10, 2025, the verdict was announced today.