The house church is located in Jining City, Shandong Province. (Photo: Voice of the Martyrs-Canada)
China (MNN) ― As the wife of Pastor Zhang Zhongxin appealed his sentence to two years re-education through labor, Public Security Bureau (PSB) officers proceeded to crack down on other members of his church, Voice of the Martyrs-Canada reports.
Together with Zhang's lawyer Li Fangping, Zhang's wife Wang Guiyun submitted an appeal to the District of People's Court of Jining City on behalf of her husband, requesting that the court withdraw the labor camp decision, according to China Aid Association. The appeal is awaiting review.
Pastor Zhang, of Jining City Shandong, has already been transferred to Shandong Province labor camp on July 6, CAA said. He is not due to be released until June 5, 2010.
On the very same day, July 14, Chinese officials and an "anti-cult group" raided the homes of Mr. Lu Xiaoai, Mr. Li Dali, and Mr. Lian Dehai--all members of Pastor Zhang's church. They confiscated Christian materials such as Bibles, CD-ROMs, and religious literature, and also detained Lian. Lian was placed under criminal detention at the City Public Security Bureau, CAA said.
PSB officers have been using a list of house church members to detain Christians in Jiaxiang County. Sources speculate that they obtained the list through spies planted in Jiaxiang house churches.
There are more Christians in prison in China than any other country in the world, and it has been estimated that six percent of the population is Christian. According to CAA, the director of China's State Administration for Religious Affairs claimed behind closed doors in 2006 that the total of Protestant and Roman Catholic Christians in China is 130 million.
