China: Religious persecution and issues – Bimonthly Digest April 16-30
General
19.04.2025 – China imposes new bans on missionary work, claims it’s for ‘national security’
Christian Post – China has banned foreign missionaries from preaching and establishing religious organizations, justifying the move as necessary for national security. The latest restrictions, announced by the Chinese Communist Party, will take effect on May 1, intensifying the crackdown on Christianity in the country.
The newly revised rules explicitly prohibit non-Chinese citizens living in China from preaching without authorization, founding religious schools, producing or selling religious literature, accepting religious donations, or recruiting Chinese citizens as religious followers, according to Mission News Network.
18.04.2025 – Chinese families and the impact of religious repression
FRC – Religious persecution is on the rise around the globe. Such is the case in China, where the government has a long history of targeting individuals who do not conform to state-imposed restrictions on religious practice. Recently, the Chinese government has intensified its crackdown on those it perceives as a threat to the regime. This political climate increases the likelihood of religious adherents seeking asylum in Western countries.
Buddhists
25.04.2025 – The story of one of Buddhism’s most revered figures, long missing, explained
RFA – The young boy who was abducted as a 6-year-old turned 36 on Friday.What he does, where he lives or even if he’s still alive isn’t known, thanks to the reticence of the Chinese government, which kidnapped him along with his family and his teacher 30 years ago.Beijing leaders, ever wary of potential rivals for the Communist Party’s authority, viewed the boy, Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, as a possible threat.Days earlier the Dalai Lama had named him the 11th reincarnation of the Panchen Lama, the second-highest spiritual leader in the largest sect of Tibetan Buddhism.
18.04.2025 – China Buddhist association: A Trojan horse of Chinese propaganda
Bitter Winter – Earlier this month, in the magazine “Chinese Religion,” an interesting article was published on directives from the United Front Work Department and the CCP to the government-controlled China Buddhist Association.
The text first underlines what is the purpose of China Buddhist Association. “General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed that winning people’s hearts is crucial and the United Front is key to this.” The Association is there to make sure that, “The Buddhist community should follow Xi JinpingThought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for the New Era, study and implement his views on the Party’s United Front and religious work and unite religious believers. They should embrace patriotism, align Buddhism with socialist values…”
17.04.2025 – China, United front calls for more control of Buddhist life release
Bitter Winter – Life release is a common Buddhist practice where followers buy fish and birds to set them free in natural habitats. Tibetan Buddhists also purchase animals to prevent their slaughter. By the way, the recently “disappeared” Tibetan Lama Humkar Dorje, who died in suspicious circumstances in Vietnam, was well-known for his mass life release gatherings.
Some CCP media recently labeled life release as a “feudal superstition” that should be strictly controlled. Some concerns about commercialization near large shrines and the environmental impact of releasing alien species may be reasonable. What is unreasonable, however, is to cite abuses to crack down on a practice with a history spanning at least 1,700 years.
Catholics
22.04.2025 – Pope Francis and China: A difficult legacy
Bitter Winter – The Pope proclaimed admirable principles that are antithetical to Xi Jinping’s thought. However, his diplomatic efforts with China did not yield the results he had hoped for.
Pope Francis’ death leads many to reflect on his pontificate from the point of view of the relationships with China. They cannot be separated from a broader view of Francis’ policies and teachings. I believe his most admirable legacy is his last encyclical, “Dilexit nos.
” It includes a part describing the elimination of God and religion from society as a grave sin, and one that makes it impossible to achieve peace and respect for all citizens. Clearly, these principles are antithetical to Xi Jinping’s idea of making religions simple mouthpieces for an atheistic regime, misleadingly called “Sinicization.” While non-specialized media did not pay much attention to “Dilexit nos,” this magnificent text will guide Catholics for years. It may also serve as a template to interpret Francis’ teachings in different fields.
Falun Gong
27.04.2025 – Retired Middle School teacher secretly sentenced to prison for her faith
Minghui – A Jiayu County, Hubei Province resident has been secretly sentenced to four years for her faith in Falun Gong, Minghui.org recently learned.
Ms. He Ping, a retired middle school English teacher, around 69, was arrested in April 2024 by officers from the Jiayu County Police Department. Her family were kept in the dark of her case status and they still don’t know where she is detained.
Since the Chinese Communist Party ordered the persecution of Falun Gong in July 1999, Ms. He has been detained at least six times and had her home repeatedly raided by the police. She served three labor camp terms totaling nearly six years, including a 1.5-year term given in 2000, a 2-year term given on February 27, 2003, and a 2-year term following an arrest on July 23, 2008.
24.04.2025 – College librarian sentenced for sharing information about Falun Gong online, fired from her job
Minghui – Minghui.org recently confirmed that a woman in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, has been sentenced to 3.5 years by a court in Henan Province for posting information online about the persecution of her faith, Falun Gong.
Ms. Luo Jing, a librarian at Zhongnan University of Economics and Law, was arrested on September 21, 2023, by officers from the Jianxi Police Station in Luoyang City, Henan Province. The police ransacked her home and took her to Luoyang for criminal detention.
Ms. Luo appeared in the Jianxi District Court in Luoyang City on April 30, 2024, and was sentenced to 3.5 years with a 15,000-yuan fine. Judges Zhang Chunlong, Xie Yue, and Guan Lei, as well as judges’ assistant Liu Dan and court clerk Li Bingbing, signed her verdict. She appealed with the Luoyang City Intermediate Court, which ruled to uphold her original verdict. The college where she worked fired her. It’s not clear where she is serving time.
16.04.2025 – Beijing, family of three sentenced for practicing Falun Gong
Bitter Winter – Practicing Falun Gong in China may mean that your whole family will be arrested and sent to jail.
Earlier this month, relatives of a 62-year-old woman, Yu Shikun, learned that the Mentougou District Court in Beijing had sentenced her to one year and six months in prison. Her daughter Liu Meili received a jail sentence of two years. Liu’s husband, An Chaoxu, was sentenced to two years, but with a three years’ probation.
The case confirms that Article 300 of the Chinese Criminal Code, which punishes those who “use” a banned religious movement regarded as a “xie jiao” (“group spreading heterodox teachings,” sometimes less correctly translated as “evil cult”), is enforced against those who simply practice a proscribed spirituality or even are just suspected of doing it.
Protestants
21.04.2025 – 9 Christians imprisoned, fined over $100K for distributing Bibles in China
Christian Post – Nine Christians were imprisoned in Inner Mongolia, an autonomous region located in the northern part of China, for distributing Bibles, with sentences ranging from one to nearly five years and fines as high as 1 million yuan ($137,000).
The Christians were convicted for illegally reselling legally published Bibles through an unregistered house church, Bitter Winter reported, adding that the Hohhot Huimin District Court sentenced the nine individuals on charges of illegal business operations, concluding a highly scrutinized legal battle.
The longest sentence was handed to Wang Honglan, who received four years and 10 months in prison and a fine of ¥1 million. Wang Jiale and Liu Minna each were sentenced to four years and six months imprisonment and fined ¥200,000 (roughly $27,500).
19.04.2025 – Golden lamp stand Church in linen, shanxi, Pastors Yang Rongli and her husband Wang Xiaoguang were rarely tried in separate cases. Their sons disclosed the details of the trial
China Aid- Wang Yunxiang, the son of Linfen’s Golden Lampstand Church pastors Yang Rongli and Wang Xiaoguang, recently disclosed a summary of his parents’ trial. He expressed admiration for his parents’ steadfast faith and revealed irregularities during the proceedings, along with concerns about his mother Yang Rongli’scurrent condition.
According to family accounts, on the afternoon of April 17, after four defense lawyers were forced to leave the courtroom, the court forcefully pushed forward with the trial and decided to separate the case of Pastor Wang Xiaoguang and his wife Yang Rongli into two separate trials. The couple, united in Christ, would now be tried separately; Pastor Wang Xiaoguang’s case was first, followed by that of his wife, Yang Rongli.
18.04.2025 – House Church preacher Ma Yan from Yinchuan Ningxia is released after completing his sentence.
China Aid – Ma Yan, a house church preacher in Jinfeng District, Yinchuan City, was released on the 18th, ending his nine-month imprisonment. This case highlights the ongoing challenges faced by house churches in China and the latent erosion of citizens’ religious freedom and rights.
On August 9, 2024, Ma Yan and about ten Christians were holding a Bible study meeting in a guesthouse in Jinfeng District when they were raided by a joint operation of police from the Jinfeng, Yinchuan District and the local police station. Several individuals were arrested. Two Christians were given seven days of administrative detention for “disrupting public order,” while Ma Yan and another brother received ten days of administrative detention for the same charge. Both were detained in Yinchuan City Detention Center.
16.04.2025 – Jiangxi province authorities closed down Christian venue in Yongxiu city, imposed fines and confiscated property
China Aid – An administrative penalty notice has undoubtedly revealed that a venue used for Christian gatherings in Yongxiu County, Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province, was penalized for being “privately established,” once again sparking widespread discussion about China’s religious policies. This incident highlights the plight faced by house churches in China.
16.04.2025 – Two christians in Aksu prefecture, Xu Lanchun and Liu Hong, found guilty of ‘using cult organizations to undermine law enforcement’, sentenced and fined in first trial, appeal rejected.
China Aid – Reporters recently learned that two Christians from Xinjiang’s Aksu Prefecture, Xu Lanchun and Liu Hong, who were charged with “using cult organizations to undermine law enforcement,” received their first-instance verdict from the Aksu City People’s Court on December 2, 2024. Both Christians were found guilty and each sentenced to 4 years imprisonment and fined ￥20,000 RMB. Both Christians disagreed with the verdict and immediately appealed to the Aksu Prefecture Intermediate People’s Court. The second trial was held on February 27, 2025, and on March 20, the Aksu Prefecture Intermediate People’s Court issued its second-instance ruling, rejecting the appeal and upholding the original verdict.
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