Underground church says leaders detained as China cracks down

Leaders of an underground church have reportedly been detained in southwest China in what appears to be a sweeping crackdown on unregistered Christian groups.

- Amy Hawkins Senior China correspondent

The Early Rain Covenant Church said its head, Li Yingqiang, was taken by police from his home in Deyang, a small city in Sichuan province.

His wife, Zhang Xinyue, has also apparently been detained, along with two other church members: Dai Zhichao, a pastor, and Ye Fenghua, a lay member. At least four further members were detained last Tuesday and later released while others remained out of contact.

The crackdown followed the arrest in October of 18 senior members of Zion Church, another prominent underground religious group.

About 100 members of a third unofficial church in Zhejiang province were detained last month, according to Human Rights Watch.

Yalkun Uluyol, the advocacy group’s China researcher, said: “The recent detention of Early Rain members appears to be part of the Chinese government’s blatant attack on house churches in China.

“As Beijing tightens its ideological control, unofficial churches are seen as ‘disobedient’ to the Communist party ideology and, therefore, pay a heavy price.”