More Christians arrested in church targeted by Chinese authorities

Officials raid Early Rain Covenant Church in an undated photo. (Photo: ChinaAid)

ChinaAid

(Chengdu, Sichuan—Feb. 27, 2019) The Chinese government has continued their harassment of members of the Early Rain Covenant Church by arresting 44 more church attendees at two worship venues on February 24.

One church attendee, A Xin, who is a translator, was arrested by nearly 10 policemen at home later that same day. The authorities cited his work, reporting the details of the continual crackdown on Early Rain Covenant Church. A specifically wrote about the mistreatment of the children, seniors, and pregnant women who were arrested and Pastor Wang Yi’s 74-year-old mother, who was beaten by police.

At the end of the day, 44 Christians were arrested, including 11 kids with the youngest being just over two months old. They were detained at the Chengdu Police Station, where their cell phones were confiscated.

According to a statement released by Early Rain Covenant Church, Tang Chunliang and other Christians were violently beaten, and children slept on the cold table and floor. During their time in detention, there was no access to food and some of them were not released until 2:00 a.m.

So far, 11 people have been sentenced to administrative detention. Those sentenced to a 14-day detention are Zhang Jianqing, Wei Zhixue, Zhu Xiaoguang, Hou Hong’en, Luo Zhipeng, Yang Duli, Zhang Guanya, Huang Guangtai, and Tang Chunliang. Both A and Yang Jian were given a 10-day detention sentence.

These arrests are part of a massive crackdown on their church that began on Dec. 9. Within that week, more than 150 people had been taken imprisoned, and several of them remain behind bars, including Pastor Wang and his wife, Jiang Rong.