China Christians to stand trial
Pastor Dale Morgan
China Christians to stand trial*
Reuters
Friday, December 15, 2006; 2:04 AM
BEIJING (Reuters) - Eight Chinese Christians will stand trial on
December 22, accused of inciting violent resistance to the law after
they protested the government's destruction of a church, a Chinese
dissident and a court official said on Friday.
The seven men and one woman from east China's Zhejiang province were
arrested after about 3,000 Christians in Xiaoshan -- a prospering
commercial suburb of the provincial capital Hangzhou -- protested
against the demolition of a church in July, Zan Aizong, a Christian
dissident close to the Xiaoshan group, told Reuters.
An official from the Xiaoshan court also confirmed the case.
"The Christians will face trial at our court soon," she said by
telephone, but declined to comment further.
China's ruling Communist Party is atheist but tolerates religions that
accept official supervision.
Xiaoshan is home to tens of thousands of Protestant Christians, many of
them traders or farmers wary of state control. In recent years, they
have struggled with the government over approval to build their own
churches.
"I think the government wants to get this case out of the way, because
of the international pressure," said Zan. "These people are church
leaders in Xiaoshan with a lot of influence there. All but one were not
even on the scene of the incident."
Xiaoshan has about 64,000 Christians, according to a report earlier this
year in a Communist Party journal, Exploration.
Zan said the pre-Christmas trial is likely to stir resentment among
local Christians. "They will be praying for them, and they are also
willing to testify for them," he said.
The eight are accused of "inciting violent resistance to enforcement of
the law," said Zan. They will be represented by defense attorneys, he
added.