Christians detained for attending Bible training

Chinese officials often raid house
church services, such as this one in
Guiyang, Guizhou. Photo: China Aid
China Aid
By Ava Collins
(Changji, Xinjiang—April 27, 2016) More than 200 armed
officials raided a house church meeting on March 5, in the Xinjiang Uyghur
Autonomous Region. Five church leaders and one other member were formally
arrested on April 11.
A group of approximately 40 Christians met for a Bible training
in the rural home of a pastor, Zheng Lan, along with local pastor Chen Yajie
and pastors visiting from Gansu province, Wang Lulu, Yang Zhaocun, and Tian Ye,
when more than 200 police and religious affairs bureau personnel surrounded the
gathering.
After registering the identities of all those in attendance,
the authorities detained the five pastors and declared the meeting an “illegal
gathering.” The detainees were accused of “suspicion of gathering a crowd to
disturb social order.” Six days later, on March 11, a church member named Liu
Yan was detained on the same charge because she drove several Christians to the
meeting.
Several of the detainees hired lawyers from Beijing to represent them. Li
Dunyong, the lawyer representing Liu Yan, told reporters that his client had
been formally arrested.
“After the arrest, no messages were able to be received from my client for
ten days,” Li said. “This was a normal religious meeting in a house church.
There were no illegal activities. What they were doing would have been nothing
at all if it had happened in a city in the coastal areas.”
Translations of documents from both the Changji authorities and the
Beijing lawyers can be found below.
China Aid reports on cases of persecution, such as those against this
Changji house church and the leaders who have been arrested, in order to expose
abuses by the Chinese government.
Case
Introduction
On March 5, 2016, Christian pastors Wang Lulu,
Yang Zhaocun, and a Christian from Changji, Chen Yajie, went from Urumqi
to the home of Zheng Lan in a rural area of Yongsheng. At this location in
Changji, there were about 40 Christians conducting a house church meeting.
Subsequently, more than 200 armed police rushed into the meeting and
seized people, including Wang Lulu, Yang Zhaocun, Chen Yajie, and Zheng Lan and
Tian Ye (who was responsible for keeping watch and providing food) who were
responsible for preaching and were taken away from the scene. Furthermore, they
were criminally detained on charges of “suspicion of gathering a crowd to
disturb social order.” Currently, they are detained in the Changji Municipal Detention
Center.
Liu Yan, a believer from Changji who picked up
several people to bring them to the meeting that day, was criminally detained on
the same charge and taken away from her own clinic on March 11. She is detained
at Hutubi County Detention Center, Changji.
On April 11, the six detained people were all
arrested, and their families, in turn, received arrest notices. To provide
legal assistance for their families, Chen Yajie hired Shang Jianping, a lawyer
from Shanghai, Liu Yan hired Li Dunyong, a lawyer from Beijing, Wang Lulu hired
Liu Peifu, a lawyer from Beijing, Yang Zhaocun’s family hired Li Baiguang, a
lawyer from Beijing and Zheng Lan’s family hired lawyers from Beijing. Many of
these defense lawyers, under the accompaniment of public security bureau
personnel, individually went to the detention centers and met with the people
involved.
Lawyer’s
Criminal Lawsuit Form, Document Five
Power
of Attorney  Number:
The client, Yang Qingshan, in accordance with the
law’s regulations, specially hires Li Baiguang from Beijing Gongxin Law Firm as
the defender of criminal suspect Yang Zhaocun for the case [in which he is]
“suspected of gathering a mob to disturb social order.” This power of attorney
document is valid from now until the date of the end of the first trial and
takes effect immediately.
Client: Yang Qingshan [Signature]
April 18, 2016
Note: This power of attorney document is one of
three copies, with one copy for the client, the law firm and the People’s client,
the law offices, and the People’s Procuratorate or the People’s Court.
Changji
Municipal Public Security Bureau
Arrest
Notice
Changji Municipal Public Security Bureau (national)
arrest notice number [2016] 0404
Yang Qingshan
After undergoing approval by the Changji Municipal
People’s Procuratorate, our bureau arrested Yang Zhaocun, who is suspected of
gathering a crowd to disturb social order, at 7:00 pm on April 11. He is imprisoned
at the Changji Municipal Detention Center.
Changji Public Security Bureau [Seal]
April 11, 2016
Note: The address of the detention center is the
sugar factory in Changji Municipality.
This copy is for the arrested person’s relatives.
Changji
City Public Security Bureau
Detention
Noti
ce
             Changji
Municipal Public Security Bureau (national) notice number [2016] 139
To the family members of Yang Zhaocun:
According to the regulations of Article 80 of the Criminal Procedure Law of the People’s
Republic of China
, our bureau criminally detained Yang Zhaocun at 2 p.m. on
March 6, 2016, on suspicion of the crime of gathering a crowd to disrupt social
order.
He is detained at the Changji Municipal Detention Center.
          Changji Municipal
Public Security Bureau
          [Seal]
             
             March 6, 2016
Note: The address of the detention center is on
the south side of the sugar factory on Wuyi Xi Road, Changji Municipality
This
copy is for the relatives of the detained.
Lawyer’s
Criminal Lawsuit Form, Document Five
Power
of Attorney  Number:
The client, Wang Pengpeng, in accordance with the
law’s regulations, specially hires Lawyer Liu Peifu from Beijing Gongxin Law
Firm as the defender of criminal suspect Wang Lulu for the case [in which he
is] suspected of gathering a mob to disturb social order. This power of
attorney document is valid from now until the date of the end of the first
trial and takes effect immediately.
Client: Wang Pengpeng [Signature]
April 18, 2016
Note: This power of attorney document is one of
three copies, with one copy for the client, the law firm and the People’s client,
the law offices, and the People’s Procuratorate or the People’s Court.
Changji
Municipal Public Security Bureau
Detention
Notice
             
  Changji Municipal Public Security Bureau (national) detention notice
number [2016] 0309
Wang Lulu’s relatives:
According to the regulations of Article 80 of the Criminal Procedure Law of the People’s
Republic of China
, our bureau criminally detained Wang Lulu, who is
suspected of the crime of gathering a crowd to disturb social order, at 12:00 p.m.
on March 9, 2016. He is currently detained at the Changji Municipal Detention Center.
          Changji
Municipal Public Security Bureau [Seal]
       
 March 9, 2016
Note: The address of the detention center is
behind the sugar factory in Daxiqu Town, Changji City
This copy is for the relatives of the detained.


China Aid Media Team
Cell: (432) 553-1080 | Office: 1+ (888) 889-7757 | Other: (432) 689-6985
Email: [email protected]
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