China's Christians suffer for their faith*

By Kate McGeown
BBC News

"They hung me up across an iron gate, then they yanked open the gate and
my whole body lifted until my chest nearly split in two. I hung like
that for four hours."

That is how Peter Xu Yongze, the founder of one of the largest religious
movements in China, described his treatment during one of five jail
sentences on account of his belief in Christianity.

Peter Xu Yongze was in jail for a total of eight years

Mr Xu, 61, is not the only Chinese Christian to suffer for his faith.
Both Catholics and Protestants have long complained of persecution by
the Communist authorities, and human rights groups claim the problem is
getting worse.

According to the Jubilee Campaign, an interdenominational lobby group,
about 300 Christians are in detention in China at any one time, and that
number is set to rise.

"China's new generation of leaders are trying to consolidate control of
the country as it goes through rapid social and economic changes," said
Wilfred Wong, a parliamentary officer for the Jubilee Campaign.

Citizens of the People's Republic of China enjoy freedom of religious belief

Chinese constitution

"The Communists feel threatened by any popular ideology which is
different from their own," he said.

China's Christian population - especially those who refuse to worship in
the tightly regulated state-registered churches - is seen as one such
threat.

According to Mr Wong, the number of Christians in China has continued to
rise, exacerbating this perceived threat and causing the authorities to
clamp down still further on unregistered churches.

The perception that China's Christians have close links with the West
adds to their plight, Mr Wong said.

'You can't evangelise'

Christianity is not actually banned in China. In fact, according to the
constitution, "citizens of the People's Republic of China enjoy freedom
of religious belief."

Beijing backed up that statement in 1997, saying that "In China, no one
is to be punished due to their religious belief".

But human rights groups and Christians say that the reality is different.

A believer was praying, so a jailer made other prisoners lift him up to
the ceiling and drop him to the ground many times until he died-Peter Xu
Yongze

"They say you can believe, but you can't evangelise," Mr Xu said. "But
that is a natural act for Christians. The bible commands us to preach
the gospel."

According to Mr Xu, who has now left China and lives in the US, it is
against regulations to worship in groups. He said that one of his
arresting officers even told him he could only avoid breaking the law if
he prayed under the covers in bed.

To an Evangelical Protestant like Mr Xu, joining one of China's
state-sanctioned churches was simply not an option - and it seems many
other Chinese Christians agree with him.

A Chinese woman prays at the government-approved Nantang Catholic
Cathedral in Beijing
Christians are required to worship in state-approved churches
Getting reliable numbers about the number of Christians in China is
notoriously difficult. Estimates vary between 40m to 70m Protestants,
only 10 million of whom are registered members of government churches.

The situation is similar for Catholics. Of the estimated 15 to 20
million Catholics in China, less than half belong to state-approved
churches, which put authority to Beijing before authority to Rome.

Those Christians who want to avoid the state-controlled religious
movements meet in unofficial buildings or even each others' homes -
hence their description as "house churches" - risking fines,
imprisonment, torture and even, in some cases, death.

Government crackdown

Human rights groups have documented an increasing number of arrests of
Chinese Christians since the beginning of 2004.

According to the charity Christian Solidarity Worldwide, persecution is
becoming more systematic and targeted at large-scale Christian gatherings.

Since June the charity has documented three mass arrests of unregistered
Christians. In each case more than 100 people were detained.

Amnesty International has reported many cases of detained church leaders
in recent years, especially in the provinces of Zhejiang, Jiangsu and Hebei.

Despite all the persecution and suffering, God is calling more and more
people in China-Pete Xu Yongze

One of the most high-profile cases is that of Gong Shengliang, head of
the South China Church, who was sentenced to death in 2001. His sentence
was commuted to a prison term, but Amnesty has received reports that he
has been severely tortured in jail.

In August three Christians were sentenced to jail terms for passing
information to foreign governments, and in July state media reported
that a woman had been beaten to death after being arrested for handing
out bibles.

Peter Xu said that while he was in jail, he saw several people even
being killed for their faith.

"A believer was praying, so a jailer made other prisoners lift him up to
the ceiling and drop him to the ground many times until he died," Mr Xu
said.

But government crackdowns - and even torture - may not make people like
Peter Xu give up their faith.

"Despite all the persecution and suffering, God is calling more and more
people in China," he said.