Early Rain pastor said to be among those held in sweep that followed arrests of members of other unregistered churches
Leaders of a prominent underground church have been detained in south-west China, according to a church statement, the latest blow in what appears to be a sweeping crackdown on unregistered Christian groups in the country.
On Tuesday, Li Yingqiang, the leader of the Early Rain Covenant Church, was taken by police from his home in Deyang, a small city in Sichuan province, according to the statement. Li’s wife, Zhang Xinyue, has also been detained, along with two other church members: Dai Zhichao, a pastor; and Ye Fenghua, a lay member. At least a further four members were taken and later released, while some others remain out of contact.
The crackdown followed the arrest of 18 senior members of Zion Church, another prominent underground church, in a nationwide sweep in October. In December, there were also reports of approximately 100 members of another unofficial church in Zhejiang province being detained after protests against the demolition of a church, according to Human Rights Watch.
Yalkun Uluyol, the China researcher at the rights NGO, said: “The recent detention of Early Rain members appears to be part of the Chinese government’s blatant attack on house churches in China. As Beijing tightens its ideological control, unofficial churches are seen as ‘disobedient’ to the Communist party ideology and, therefore, pay a heavy price.”
