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China

• Imprisoned Lawyer Subjected to Forced Labour

  

  Cheng Yuan was arrested in 2019 for his work as a lawyer, and for his involvement in an organization known as Changsha Funeng (read more). The purpose of the organization is to protect the rights and interests of vulnerable members of society. The arrested Christian lawyer was eventually sentenced to five years in prison. Two other members of the organization, who were convicted along with Cheng, have received sentences of two or three years.

• Christian Banned from Digital Platform

  

  Since the government of China introduced new measures impeding online religious information on March 1st, numerous websites were forcibly shut down. In addition, social media content has been severely limited in what was already considered to be one of the most restrictive nations in the world. (See this report for more details.)

• Zhang Chunlei Granted Lawyer's Visitation

  

  On the morning of March 16th, 2021, public security officers raided the Ren'ai Reformed Church in Guiyang, taking ten Christians into custody. The church's leader, Elder Zhang Chunlei, went to the police station to negotiate but was also detained himself. In the many months that followed, access to his lawyer was severely restricted (see this report for details).

• Families Appreciate Prayers for Imprisoned Elders

  

  On May 31st, Elder Hao Ming was finally able to visit with his lawyer, more than six months after his initial arrest. Elder Hao had been arrested on November 17th when police raided the Early Rain Qingcaodi Church. (See this report for details on the original case.)The visit took place at the Deyang City Detention Centre in China's Sichuan province.

• Christian Couple Finally Married Despite Opposition

  

  A recently published report outlined the opposition experienced by Zhang Qiang and Xiao Yue who were initially scheduled to wed on May 21st (see our previous report). Due to harassment from local Chinese authorities, however, these two members of the Early Rain Covenant Church were ultimately forced to postpone their wedding ceremony.

• Christian Wedding Disrupted by Authorities

  

  Zhang Qiang and Xiao Yue were eagerly anticipating their wedding day, which was planned for May 21st. But as the day approached, governmental pressure against the Christian couple began to mount. The problem is that they are members of the Early Rain Covenant Church in Chengdu – a church that has been banned and continues to face significant oppression from Chinese authorities. (See our country report for more details.)

• Christian Website Forced to Shut Down

  

  The "Jona Home" website has been forced to cease operations after more than 20 years of service due to an increasing crackdown on religious content in China. On April 12th, the Christian website posted the following notice: "Due to reasons known to everyone, from now on our site can no longer serve brothers and sisters in Christ. Thanks to all for your company and support in the past 21 years!"

• Baptismal Leads to Further Harassment

  

  For several months, six believers at the Shenzhen Trinity Harvest Gospel Church took classes leading up to their baptism. On September 5th, 2021, the Christians – along with Pastor Mao Zhibin and other church members – drove to a beach in Huizhou to celebrate the church's anniversary. However, some of the believers were tracked by police, who closed the beach before they could gather.

• Elder Zhang's Lawyer Forbidden Visitation

  

  On the morning of March 16th, 2021, public security officers raided the Renai Reformed Church in Guiyang, taking more than ten Christians into custody. After hearing about the raid, the church's leader, Elder Zhang Chunlei, went to the police station to negotiate but was detained by the authorities. (For additional information, see this page.)

• ''Gospel Warrior'' Grateful for Detention

  

  Chen Wensheng has been referred to as a "Gospel Warrior" for his unwavering passion to spread the Good News of Jesus by testifying of the fact that Christ's life-transforming power is available to all who believe. This faithful believer has been arrested multiple times by the Chinese Communist Party, but each time he returns to the streets in order to continue boldly declaring the Gospel message (read more).