Christians beaten by Chinese police as church is razed*

By Peter Simpson in Beijing
(Filed: 01/08/2006)

Hundreds of Chinese police clashed with thousands of "underground"
Christians over the demolition of a church which was deemed to be an
illegal structure.

Up to 500 police forced back as many as 3,000 Christ-ians who had
gathered at the weekend to mount a peaceful demonstration against the
state's demolition of the church in the eastern province of Zhejiang.

More than 20 Christians were injured in the clashes on Saturday, while
five organisers of the protest were arrested, according to the Hong
Kong-based Information Centre for Human Rights and Democracy.

Its spokesman, Frank Liu, said that the unregistered church was being
rebuilt by locals after it was destroyed last year by a typhoon.

As news spread that a demolition crew had been sent in, demonstrators
massed at the construction site. Police were called in, leading to clashes.

A police officer involved in the incident acknowledged that the clash
took place but denied that any Christians had been arrested.

The unnamed officer said: "It is clear that this church was an illegal
structure. It did not have the approval of the religious affairs bureau
or the government.

"The church had to be destroyed. They can explain their demands, but if
they are in violation of public order, laws and regulations, we will
deal with them in accordance with the law."

China maintains tight control over religious affairs and requires all
faith communities, whether Buddhist, Taoist, Muslim or Christian, to
register and carry out their activities according to strict and often
changed guidelines.

There are an estimated 80 million Christians praying outside the
state-regulated Church. At Christmas and Easter, lifts and stairwells of
public housing complexes are packed with smartly-dressed Christians on
their way to a service at a "house church".

Last year, President George W Bush attended one of Beijing's five
officially recognised Protestant churches during a visit to the country.
He wrote in the visitors' book: "God Bless China's Christians."

Mark Allison, a spokesman for Amnesty International in Hong Kong, said:
"This latest incident proves that despite the odd overture towards more
freedom of expression and the building of a harmonious society, China's
leader's will use force to crack down on un-sanctioned religion.

"Those arrested, like the thousands of Christians interned across the
county, who largely go unreported, are forbidden to worship the religion
of their choice.

"They will receive summary justice by the police and be sentenced to
re-education through forced labour or sentenced to prison."

While Beijing has been doing battle with the Vatican for decades and
appointing its own priests, it is also struggling to rein in new and
growing religious movements that have attracted millions of new
followers in recent years.