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All articles & reviews tagged with persecution

News

May 2019
News > International

China: Cash rewards for turning in Christians

The Chinese government is offering cash rewards to people who inform on underground churches. One city, Guangzhou, is offering more than £1,000 to those who can identify ‘unofficial’ places of worship. The incentive is part of a nationwide effort to bring all religious groups under the control of the Communist Party. Officials within the Chinese government believe the West is trying to use Christianity to undermine the Communist regime. Religious affairs officers in Guangzhou have decided to offer cash rewards for useful information starting from just 100 yuan (£11). But helping to identify and arrest preachers and members of unauthorised religious groups will be rewarded...

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News

April 2019
News > International

India: More Christians targeted for their faith

Targeted violence and hate crimes against the Christian community in India continued unabated in 2018, according to the Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI). The Religious Liberty Commission of the EFI has recorded 325 incidents where Christians have been targeted using violence, intimidation or harassment. According to a report published by the group, ‘More than the numbers, what is disturbing is the sudden spurt of violence in a few districts of Uttar Pradesh, the country’s most populous province, and in Tamil Nadu in the extreme south of the subcontinent’. The report added, ‘Most cases go unreported either because the victim and witnesses are terrified, or the...

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News

March 2019
News > International

China: Government bans first commandment in church

The Chinese government has ordered one church to remove the first commandment, ‘You shall have no other gods before me’, from its wall. Chinese officials claim that displaying the first commandment contradicts the policy of China’s president, Xi Jinping. It is yet another example of increasingly intense persecution of Christians and churches by the Chinese state. Meeting places are being closed down, and pastors and church members are being imprisoned. The Chinese authorities are issuing a new state translation of the Bible to establish the ‘correct understanding’ of Scripture. The current approach has been deemed the worst religious persecution since Chairman Mao’s attempts to eradicate...

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News

February 2019
News > Persecution

Jeremy Hunt calls for review into global persecution of Christians

Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has acknowledged the ‘dramatic rise in violence’ against Christians globally, and launched an independent review to investigate. An estimated 215 million Christians faced discrimination and violence last year, and an average of 250 were killed for their faith each month. Mr Hunt says Britain ‘can and must do more’ to help persecuted Christians and has commissioned the review to determine how it can do that, with the report expected by Easter. Led by the Bishop of Truro Rt Rev. Philip Mounstephen, the review will focus entirely on Christian persecution. Its aims are to map the persecution of Christians in the Middle...

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China: Police given quotas for arrests of Christians

News

February 2019
News > International > Persecution

China: Police given quotas for arrests of Christians

The religious liberty magazine Bitter Winter is reporting that police stations in the major port city of Dalian (a population of 6.6 million) in northeast China are being evaluated based on the number of Christians they arrest. A police officer from Dalian, the second-largest city in Liaoning Province, near the North Korean border, told the magazine that his station had received a notice from the National Security Bureau which, as part of a performance-assessment plan, set out how many Christians they would have to arrest. The officer said that all stations in the city had received a similar plan, assessing the station’s performance with a...

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News

February 2019
News > International > Persecution

Iran: More than 100 Christians arrested amidst Govt crackdown

More than 100 Christians have been arrested in Iran in just one week and ordered to cut all contact with religious groups and house churches. They were detained by Iranian authorities, questioned on their involvement in Christian activities, and told to expect a call from Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence. Christian charity Open Doors UK, which speaks out against persecution of believers, has described the news as ‘highly concerning’. Many of the 114 believers were converts to Christianity from Islam who were accused of proselytising. Conversion to Christianity is an offence punishable by more than ten years’ imprisonment. The recent events are part of a growing...

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By Shirin Aguiar

News

January 2019
News > Ethics > Uncategorised

Peers criticise PM over failure to grant asylum to Asia Bibi

In a letter to The Times, members of the House of Lords have strongly criticised the UK government over its handling of Asia Bibi’s plea for asylum. Asia Bibi was convicted in Pakistan of blasphemy against Islam and sentenced to death, but was recently acquitted. However, there are fears she will be killed by hardliners unless she flees the country. Lord Alton of Liverpool, Baroness Cox and other peers said in their letter that failing to offer her sanctuary here was a ‘serious betrayal’ by the UK. They wrote, ‘We are deeply concerned by reports that Theresa May is refusing asylum to Asia Bibi, who...

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