May 16, 2021 | Freedom of Religion and Belief | HRWF

General

13.05.21 – Department of State religious freedom report: China is guilty of “crimes against humanity”

The Department of State releases its yearly religious liberty report: China (with 85 quotes from Bitter Winter), Russia, Pakistan are severely criticized.

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05.05.21 – China leveraging the International System to further religious persecution

As China assumes the presidency of the UN Security Council for the month of May, human rights activists around the world are raising concerns about China’s abuse of the international system to further its persecution of religious minorities. The presidency rotates among the fifteen member states, with China last holding the position in March 2020.

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02.05.21 – China shuts down Bible App, Christian WeChat as new crackdown policies go into effect

China’s communist authorities are continuing their crackdown on Christianity by removing Bible Apps and Christian WeChat public accounts as new highly restrictive administrative measures on religious staff went into effect Saturday.

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01.05.21 – Bible apps and Christian WeChat accounts shut down in China

In a move to crack down on Christianity nationwide, the Chinese government is targeting the cyberspace— Bible Apps and Christian WeChat public accounts have been removed.

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30.04.21 – China introduces new regulations restricting religious practice

New administrative measures on religious staff, released by China’s State Administration for Religious Affairs in February 2021, will come into effect on 1 May amid concerns from some religious leaders about their restrictive nature. One human rights lawyer described the measures as “one more weapon in (the Chinese authorities’) arsenal to limit or further persecute the religious communities.”

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Church of Almighty God

06.05.21 – Church of Almighty God refugees: why they should be granted asylum

A monumental study of 271 decisions rendered in administrative and court cases shows that more applications are being accepted—but not everywhere.

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Uyghur Muslims

14.05.21 – Xinjiang: An extraordinary UN event elicits China’s furious reaction

Gathered by the U.S., UK, and Germany, 18 countries vowed to break the United Nations’ silence on the Uyghur genocide.

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14.05.21 – On Eid, Xinjiang imams defend China against US criticism

Muslim leaders from the Xinjiang region rejected Western allegations that China is suppressing religious freedom, speaking to foreign diplomats and media at a reception at the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

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13.05.21 – China detaining and sentencing Uyghur Imams en masse, UHRP reveals

The Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP), in partnership with Justice for All, has released a new report detailing the mass detention of Uyghur and other Turkic Muslim imams in East Turkistan, and attempts by the Chinese government to cut off the transmission of religious knowledge across generations.

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13.05.21 – Since 2014 Beijing has imprisoned at least 630 imams in Xinjiang

According to the Uyghur Human Rights Project, 18 Muslim clerics have died in prison or immediately after their release. Many have not been heard from for some time. Little official documentation exists about people sent to concentration camps. Uyghurs and members of other Muslim groups have been imprisoned just for praying.

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12.05.21 – Islam dispossessed

The Uyghur Human Rights Project (UHRP) promotes the rights of the Uyghur people through research-based advocacy. We publish reports and analysis in English and Chinese to defend Uyghurs’ civil, political, social, cultural, and economic rights according to international human rights standards.

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Falun Gong

15.05.21 – Once incarcerated for eight years, Ningxia woman gets another four years for her faith

A Yinchuan City, Ningxia Province resident was sentenced to four years on February 25, 2021, for her faith in Falun Gong, a spiritual and meditation discipline that has been persecuted by the Chinese communist regime since 1999.

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Protestants

10.05.21 – Leading house churches targeted in China

Beijing’s Zion Church, Renai Church in Guiyang, and Early Rain in Chengdu continue to be under attack.

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09.05.21 – China: Authorities arrest preacher of heavily-persecuted house church for officiating funeral

Communist authorities arrested a preacher from the heavily-persecuted house church in southwestern China’s Sichuan province, Early Rain Covenant Church, for “allegedly disturbing public order” by officiating a member’s funeral.

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07.05.21 – House church leader formally arrested on fraud charges after weeks in detention

Zhang Chunlei, an elder of Love (Ren’ai) Reformed Church in Guiyang in China’s southwestern Guizhou province, has been officially arrested and accused of fraud after nearly seven weeks in detention.

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Buddhists

10.05.21 – No Religion in Tibetan schools, China tells parents

Across China, multiple celebrations mark the anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China. Catholics and other believers can choose among a panoply of seminars, conferences, trips, visits, and exhibits. For Mgr Ma Yinglin, without the Communist Party there would be no New China, no socialism with Chinese characteristics, and no happy life for people today.

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07.05.21 – Buddhists celebrate the 32nd birthday of the Panchen Lama, still held hostage by Beijing

Buddhists in Ladakh and the Tashi Lhunpo monastery in Bylakuppe (Karnataka) joined Tibetans around the world to celebrate the Panchen Lama’s 32nd birthday. The celebrations, held on 25 April, were accompanied by renewed calls on China to release him.

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