Communist China Imprisons Pastor for Speaking against Church Demolitions

“A Chinese preacher who opposed an ‘anti-church’ demolition campaign that saw hundreds of places of worship partially or completely destroyed has been jailed for one year on charges supporters claim are trumped up. Huang Yizi, 40, was sentenced before a packed courtroom on Tuesday afternoon for ‘gathering crowds to disturb social order,’ Zhang Kai, his lawyer, said. ‘I think the whole trial was manipulated by the authorities,’ Mr Zhang told The Telegraph, adding that his client would appeal. The lawyer said around 1,000 Christian supporters gathered outside the court in Pingyang County in the eastern province of Zhejiang. He met the pastor before the hearing and believed ‘his state of mind was good.’ Last year Mr Huang, who has a wife and young son, said he was ‘grateful that God has given him the chance’ to go to prison for speaking out against the demolition of churches and crosses in Zhejiang province where he is from. At least 400 churches were affected by the one-year campaign that saw elderly Christians repeatedly try to defend their places of worship from demolition teams and security guards. Authorities denied Christian churches were being targeted claiming they were taking action against all ‘illegal structures.’”

“China Jails Christian Pastor,” The Telegraph (London), Mar. 25, 2015

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