China Aid Association
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| Brother Jin in the prison. |
Brother Jin Shaohua, 42, is a member of Shouwang Church and has faithfully attended the Sunday worship services in Zhongguancun Square. Shouwang Church has been continuously persecuted by the Chinese government. On many occasions, Jin has been taken to the Public Security Bureau for interrogation and illegal detention. On the morning of July 28, 2013, as Jin was going for the outdoor Sunday service, he was verbally abused and violently beaten by several DSPS agents, resulting in a dislodged tooth, a bloody mouth, and various other wounds on his body. Jin has the hospital’s diagnosis as a proof. After Jin was struck down, the Domestic Security Protection Squad (DSPS) agents threw him into a vehicle. Jin wanted to call an ambulance to take him to a hospital for treatment, but the police refused.
Jin, who was in a semi-coma, was brought to the Public Security Bureau in a police vehicle and locked up in a prison cell. Because of their violent beatings and torture, Jin experienced difficulty breathing. It was only after he repeatedly demanded that DSPS agents to call for an ambulance that they agreed to do so. After a very long time, the ambulance and the medical professionals came to the iron cage where Jin was illegally detained.
After paramedics measured his blood pressure, Jin implored the medical professionals to bring him to the hospital for treatment. The DSPS agents and the police, however, would not give paramedics permission to transport Jin to the hospital. After medical professionals left, the DSPS agents continued verbally abusing Jin who was lying on the floor moaning from the pain he endured. At that time, other brothers and sisters were locked up in the cells near Jin. At about 11 p.m., the DSPS agents released Jin and the other church members. The brothers and sisters then brought Jin to the nearby China-Japan Friendship Hospital for treatment.
This incident demonstrated the continued suppression and persecution of Beijing Shouwang Church by the Chinese government. Regardless of whether the church has leased or purchased venues for gatherings, the Chinese government has intervened each time. As a result, Shouwang Church hasn’t had a fixed location for its gatherings and, finally, lost access to all indoor sites. This forced the brothers and sisters of Shouwang Church to conduct their Sunday worship outdoors. By July 21, 2013, the brothers and sisters of Shouwang Church had held 120 outdoor Sunday worship services.
The brothers and sisters of Shouwang Church have persisted in conducting the outdoor worship service in Zhongguancun Square. However, each time, they were suppressed and persecuted by the DSPS agents. The pastor and the elders of the church have been placed under house arrest and the brothers and sisters who came to the site have been locked up, interrogated and illegally detained by the DSPS agents.
China Aid strongly denounces the Chinese government’s escalating persecution of the house churches and it also strongly denounces the brutal and barbarian acts against Christians holding Sunday worship service. We call on the Chinese government to investigate this serious incident in which citizens’ freedom of belief and their right to personal safety are violated and to take real measures to guarantee the basic human rights, including the freedom of religious belief. We will also continue to pray to God that He will continue to lead us and bless the brothers and sisters of Shouwang Church. May the Lord give them strength and confidence. It is our belief that a nation full of love and righteousness will certainly come!
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