UPDATE (11 SEPTEMBER): By noon on 2 September, Hongpailou police station had notified the four leaders’ families that they were being detained for 14 days by Wuhou District Public Security Bureau for “illegally carrying out activities in the name of social groups” from 2 September to 16 September. They are being held in the Chengdu Detention Centre. China Aid reports that Elder Li Youhong was hospitalised with a stroke two or three years ago and needs to take daily medication, while Deputy Deacon Zeng Qingtao needs to take diabetes medication every day. Police have notified their wives to send them medicine. Elder Li Yingqiang was diagnosed with high blood pressure when receiving a medical examination during administrative detention at the end of last year.
On Sunday 1 September police raided a gathering of around fifty members of the banned Chengdu Early Rain Covenant Church (ERCC) and took away Elder Li Yingqiang, Preacher Wu Wuqing, Elder Li Youhong and Deputy Deacon Zeng Qingtao. The four leaders have been put in administrative detention for 14 days.
Church members were preparing to hold Sunday worship in a rented venue in Chengdu’s Wuhou district when more than two dozen police officers gathered at the building at around 8.45 am and locked in those who had already entered the venue. Police blocked members arriving outside from entering and told the Christians that their gathering was “unauthorised“. Those inside and outside reportedly remained orderly and calmly sang hymns, prayed and opened Zoom to enable online participation.
A church member who gave only the surname Li for fear of reprisals told Radio Free Asia, “Brother Li Yingqiang was preaching when the police stormed the meeting place and disrupted our worship.”
Police took away Elder Li Yingqiang and Preacher Wu Wuqing at 9.05 am, while Elder Li Youhong (also known as Yan Hong) and Deputy Deacon Zeng Qingtao led those inside the venue in Bible reading, prayer and hymn singing. At 9.55 am police took them away too, then cut off the power supply to the venue and ordered everyone to leave. Despite the sweltering heat, church members stayed to pray and sing hymns under the leadership of the choir. Those outside the venue gathered to pray and sing hymns in a lobby but police stopped them and asked them to leave. They left quietly and reportedly looked for a place to continue worshipping.
Chinese rights blog Weiquanwang reported that on-site property management staff played “red songs” loudly to disrupt and disturb the Christians in an attempt to drive them out of the venue.
ERCC is a large, unregistered house church that has suffered intense persecution since December 2018, when more than 150 members were detained following a raid. Lead pastor Wang Yi is serving a nine-year prison sentence and the authorities continue to harass church members.
14-day administrative detention
The four leaders are being held at the Chengdu Detention Centre under 14-day administrative detention (which can be used for perceived “troublemakers” without the need for a trial) with a scheduled release date of 16 September. According to a copy of the Administrative Summons Notice sent to their families, they are being held on suspicion of “illegal activities under the guise of a social organisation“.
Zeng Qingtao has reportedly requested medications for his chronic health problems to be sent to the detention centre, and his family has been told to hire a lawyer.
Radio Free Asia points out that in other cases Chinese police have used periods of administrative detention to bring criminal charges and have later converted detainees’ status to “criminal detention” without releasing them.
Wu Wuqing still under pressure to move out of apartment
Preacher Wu Wuqing (pictured) and his family continue to experience pressure from local government to move out of their Chengdu apartment. Water and electricity have been cut off repeatedly, which has been particularly difficult during peak summer heat in Chengdu. Following intermittent outages, electricity has been cut off every day since 25 July (first by damaging the switch and later by cutting the wires) and water has been cut off since 29 July. Natural gas was cut off on 7 August but was restored the next day after Preacher Wu called the gas company several times.
Guards have been dispatched outside the apartment door and follow Preacher Wu whenever he goes out, and the lock and doorknob have been sprayed with glue multiple times. In addition, every night at 2 am and 4 am unidentified people knock on the door, waking the family.
Preacher Wu has been detained repeatedly, had his car tyres punctured and has even been blocked from entering his residential complex by security guards and had his furniture thrown into waste disposal stations. Since autumn 2020, water and electricity supplies have been cut off multiple times.
In February 2024, police detained Preacher Wu when ERCC held its first in-person Sunday worship of 2024 in a rented hotel space and put him in administrative detention for 14 days on suspicion of “organising illegal gatherings”.
(Radio Free Asia, Weiquanwang)
Photo credit: citizen photo via Radio Free Asia