(Fangchenggang, Guangxi – August 23, 2024) Six Christians from Guangxi were detained by local authorities for five days. The authorities unusually applied a public security provision to impose administrative punishment on them.
According to a report from the Weiquan Wang (Rights Defense Network) on August 17, the Dongxing City Public Security Bureau in Fangchenggang City, Guangxi Province, administratively detained six Christians — Yang Penghuan, Wei Sanhong, Sister Du Huifei, Huang Jiajin, Dai Jianping, and Sister Sun Qi — on charges of “harming society by masquerading under the name of religion or qigong” under the second item of Article 27 of the “Public Security Administration Punishment Law of the People’s Republic of China.” The administrative detention lasted from July 20 to 25, with each person detained for a period of five days.
The report states that these six Christians were taken away while they were at a relative’s house taking care of children. Among them, Brother Wei Sanhong was reportedly slapped with a transcript by law enforcement personnel after being taken to the second floor.
They belong to a community of Christians known as the “Christian Assembly.”
The “Christian Assembly” was founded by Brother Watchman Nee in Shanghai during the 1920s to 1930s and was originally called the “Little Flock Church.” The name aimed to break away from the connotations of Western denominations, making it the most indigenized Christian faith group in mainland China. Unfortunately, Brother Watchman Nee died in prison in 1972.
The “Christian Assembly” expanded rapidly in mainland China, reaching its peak and sparking a spiritual movement with significant influence. It also extended to the overseas Chinese Christian communities, particularly establishing the “Christian Assembly” in many Southeast Asian countries and the United States. Undoubtedly, the “Christian Assembly” represents orthodox Christian faith. To this day, it preserves a good, unique, and devout spiritual tradition.
It is rare for Chinese authorities to invoke Article 27 of the “Public Security Administration Punishment Law of the People’s Republic of China” to penalize Christians from the “Christian Assembly” on a nationwide scale.
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