Tags

Detainment / Arrest

• Christian Education Facilities Face Closure

  

  In recent months, seminaries in Wenzhou, Zhejiang Province, have been raided and forced to close by officials who claim that the Christian schools are illegal. On August 8th, the Wenzhou Bowen Bible School and the Wenzhou Bible School were both raided. These raids followed an official announcement which was issued to the seminaries three days before. The claim is that the schools were organizing events without government authorization and had not registered their activities with officials.

• Two Preachers Arrested for Alleged Fraud

  

  On August 19th, 70 members of the Linfen Covenant House Church were enjoying an outdoor family camp when more than 100 police officers suddenly appeared, taking everyone into custody, before they were eventually released. Preacher Li Jie and Preacher Han Xiaodong were detained on suspicion of fraud a few days later. Formal notice of the charges was presented to their wives on September 23rd. Li Jie's wife, Li Shanshan, had also been arrested but was released on bail September 6th and reunited with their two children.

• Christian Portrayed as "Socially Dangerous"

  

  The Public Security Bureau in the Sichuan Province of China arrested a Christian man, Lin Xuesui, on June 14th for allegedly "organizing and financing illegal gatherings." The charges were laid after Lin, who is from the coastal city of Wenzhou, shared his testimony in a remote mountainous region about 2,000 kilometres away from his home. Two other Christians were arrested at the same time but later released on bail. According to a recent report by VOM Korea, Lin remains in custody pending his trial.

• Christian Convert Sentenced to Death for Apostasy

  

  A Libyan appeals court has sentenced a young man to death for converting to Christianity, despite there being no official apostasy laws in the country. The name of the Christian convert, who came to faith in Jesus four years ago, has been withheld for his protection. Though the young believer has faced pressure to recant his belief in Jesus, he refuses to forsake his Christian faith.

• Christian Couple Detained

  

  Homayoun Zhaveh and his wife Sara Ahmadi have faced legal difficulties since June 2019 because of their faith. In November 2020, Sara was sentenced to 11 years in prison for her alleged role in leading a house church. Homayoun was sentenced to two years for his membership with the church. Upon appeal, Sara's sentence was reduced to eight years. After their case was rejected by the Supreme Court of Iran, they expected to start serving their sentences in June 2021. However, when they presented themselves to Evin Prison, they were told to return home. (More details are available here.)

• Several Christian Women Facing Charges

  

  On July 30th, six Christian women in the Maharajganj area of Uttar Pradesh, India, were taken into custody based on charges of forced conversions. The charges were laid after members of a Hindu nationalist group, the VHP, alleged that the women were inducing others to convert to Christianity during a birthday party.

• Appeal Denied for Detained Christians

  

  Anooshavan Avedian is an Iranian‑Armenian Christian leader who was arrested for promoting "propaganda contrary to and disturbing to the holy religion of Islam" through the house church he operated in his home. He was sentenced to ten years' imprisonment, along with an additional ten years of "deprivation of social rights." While two Christian converts, Abbas Soori and Maryam Mohammadi, were also sentenced with the same ten‑year deprivation term, they were spared the prison time. See this report for more details.

• Wives Detained as Church Leaders Face Trials

  

  In January 2020, five Chinese Christians attended a conference in Malaysia. A year later, they were charged with "illegally crossing the national border," even though they had all the required legal travel documentation. Three of the believers were convicted and have since served their sentences. However, the trials for Pastor An Yankui and Zhang Chenghao are being delayed until further notice (read more).

• Pastor Receives One-Year Sentence

  

  Pastor Keshav Raj Acharya of the Abundant Harvest Church in Pokhara, Nepal, has faced ongoing pressure from Nepalese authorities over the past two years. Initially detained in March 2020, he was accused of spreading false information about COVID-19 after uttering a recorded statement that "God is able to heal." Eventually those charges were dropped, but the pastor was arrested twice more for allegedly trying to convert Hindus to Christianity and "outraging religious feelings." In November 2021, he was convicted but granted bail a month later while appealing the ruling (see this page).

• Christians Persecuted in Russian-Occupied Areas

  

  Several recently occurring incidents have led to charges against citizens of Russian-occupied Crimea. In a report published on July 5th, Forum 18 outlines several instances of harassment against Christians and Muslims, demonstrating the oppressive control that Russia is forcing upon people living within areas of the peninsula.