leaders who they say were arrested last week after the Communist government issued a "secret directive" to launch a massive crackdown against religious groups and promote Atheism.
Christian Solidarity Worldwide said it had joined China Aid Association (CAA) in urging the Chinese authorities to release the leaders of China Gospel Fellowship who were "arrested June 11" at Wuhan city, Hubei province, where that retreated together.
In a statement to BosNewsLife, CAA quoted an unidentified senior house church leader and an eyewitness as saying that about 50 police believed to be from the feared Public Security Bureau (PSB) of Wuhan City raided the church meeting and arrested all of the participants.
They included the 39-year old senior Gospel Fellowship leader Mr. Xing Jinfu, CAA said. The organization added that Xing was arrested at least three times in the past for his Christian activities and sentenced to three years re-education through labor in 1996 on charges of "illegal preaching."
CAA said it had also learned that in a separate incident China Gospel Fellowship Pastor Shen Xianfeng was put under house arrest at a residential area in Wuhan city after PSB officers "thoroughly searched a house where Mr. Shen was recovering from illness of his crippled legs."
WHEREABOUTS UNKNOWN
The whereabouts of the other arrested church officials are still unknown, CAA said. China Gospel Fellowship, which was established in the mid-1980s, is one of five major Chinese house church groups with a combined membership of at least five million members.
CAA said it has learned from an internal source within Chinese Communist Party that the Politburo had recently convened in a special secret meeting discussing "how to deal with religious affairs in China".
It quoted the source as saying "a secret directive was issued after the meeting calling every level of the Chinese government and the Party to crack down" against "illegal religious activities." The directive also urged the Communist Party’s Department of Propaganda to carry out a special media campaign to promote atheism, CAA said.
MASSIVE ARRESTS
"Given the recent massive arrests of unregistered religious leaders in different areas in China", added Bob Fu, president of CAA, "the international community should be alarmed and take concrete actions to urge the Chinese government to fulfill her signed pledge to protect her citizens’ religious freedom mandated by relevant international human rights covenants."
The latest reported crackdown comes just days after another Christian human rights group, The Voice Of the Martyrs (VOM) said Chinese house church leader Xu Shuang’s whereabouts and condition are unknown, and that Chinese Christians fear for his life as another believer was already tortured to death.
Xu, leader of the 500-thousand strong house church group "Three Grades Servants" in Henan Province, northeast China, was arrested April 26, and since then family members have been prevented from seeing him, reported VOM. He could face the death penalty if convicted of leading an "Evil Cult".
BEATEN TO DEATH
He was detained by the PSB in Harbin City, Heilongjiang province, along with other believers including Gu Xianggao, a teacher of the group. Gu, 28, was beaten to death the next day while in the custody of PSB officers, his family and human rights watchdogs say.
CAA and Christian Solidarity Worldwide have urged Christians to press the Chinese authorities to release these arrested church leaders immediately. They said that in the United States a letter of concern can be written to the Chinese embassy in Washington DC: Ambassador Yang Jiechi, Embassy of the People’s Republic of China, 2300 Connecticut Ave NW, Washington DC 20008. Telephone numbers were said to be (202) 328-2500 or fax: (202) 588-0032. The Director of Religious Affairs can be reached at: (202) 328-2512, CAA said.
The Chinese President Hu Jintao, who visited Budapest last week, has refused to answer questions from reporters about human rights issues. But analysts have linked the latest crackdown to concern among Communist authorities about the rapidly growing churches in China. Besides individuals known to human rights groups, thousands of Christians and dissidents are believed to be detained across China in prisons and labor camps.
