CHINA KILLS CHRISTIAN, IMPRISONS CLERGY

           The following is from a recent edition of Christian
            Crusade Newspaper, P.O. Box 977, Tulsa, OK 
            74102. The newspaper is in its 42nd year of 
            publication. Dr. Hargis can be E-mailed on 
            America On Line as BJHargis, on Compuserve at 
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            copyright 1993 Christian Crusade Newspaper.
            All rights reserved. 

from CHRISTIAN CRUSADE NEWSPAPER
by Dr. Billy James Hargis, publisher
Keith Wilkerson, editor
     
Beijing's atheistic government has cracked down on a wide 
spectrum of Christian believers ever since the Clinton 
administration awarded China "most-favored nation" trading 
status, according to witnesses in recent congressional hearings.
    Furthermore, Chinese officials have told U.S. trade 
representatives that they do not take seriously Clinton 
administration to cut off trade because of human rights abuses.
    Chinese police arrested a Catholic bishop days after he met 
with U.S. Rep. Chris Smith (R-N.J,) in Beijing, the congressman 
said. Bishop Su Zhiming's detention came at the same time that 
Treasury Secretary Lloyd Bentsen was in China to urge 
improvements in China's human rights record.
    Su, 61, previously spent 15 years in prison for his participation 
in the underground Catholic church. The Beijing government 
only recognizes a state-run Catholic-style church that is barred 
from having contact with the Vatican in Europe.
     Smith said Su's arrest was evidence that China was 
"backsliding" on human rights. "Human rights conditions 
continue to deteriorate at a rapid pace that does not seem to be 
letting up," the Congressman said.
    News Network International confirms growing persecution, 
including the death of Zheng Musheng, a Chinese Protestant who 
attended an illegal home fellowship service in defiance of 
Communist Party rules. Zheng died after police arrested him, 
hung him by his ankles and beat him. He was one of millions of 
Chinese who worship in unrecognized and unregulated churches 
set up illegally in private homes, NNI said.
    The Clinton administration says China must improve its 
human rights record to win renewal of most-favored-nation trade 
status later this year.
    The Puebla Institute, a Washington-based human rights group, 
said this week that Chinese authorities recently arrested at least 
14 Christians, including seven underground Catholic priests and 
seven Evangelical house-church preachers. At least six of these 
have been sentenced to "reform through labor" prison camps for 
one to three years, it said.
    Amnesty International placed the total at 25 Protestant 
preachers and Catholic leaders arrested or placed under 
restrictions for their religious activities in recent months.
    Police harassment has forced Shanghai's most senior home 
fellowship group leader into hiding to avoid arrest, according to 
NNI's Andrew Wark. "Li Tian An, in his late 60s, has reportedly 
come under mounting pressure from Public Security Bureau 
authorities in the past year," reported Wark. Police told Li that if 
he would report Christians attending home churches, they would 
not interfere with his evangelism efforts. Li refused and went 
underground.
    Another Shanghai home fellowship group leader, Xie Moshan, 
is under house arrest. All his mail is intercepted and read by 
authorities. Xie, in his early 70s, had been jailed on charges of 
"conducting illegal evangelism."
    In the northern Chinese province of Hebei, police have 
detained two Catholic bishops and three priests. Details 
surrounding their arrests remain incomplete. Sources report that 
Bishops Jia Zhiguo of Zhengding and Joannes Han of Handan 
were arrested and are in administrative detention. Jia is one of 
the "underground" Catholic church's most senior leaders. He was 
arrested January 7 in the city of Zhengding. Han was reportedly 
arrested shortly after he officiated mass in Handan. 
    Of the three detained priests, Chu Tai, has reportedly been 
sentenced to a one-year "reeducation through labor" prison term. 
Another priest, Zhang Li, was sentenced to three years. The third 
priest, Placidius Pei Ronggui of Shijiazhuang, earlier had been 
sentenced to five years of "reeducation through labor." 
    Travel has been restricted for two other Catholic bishops in the 
northeastern municipality of Tianjin. Bishop Li Side has been 
confined to a church in a mountainous district. Bishop Shi 
Hongzhen has had his travel restricted as well.
    Wark also reported that in the Fujian Province, police have 
arrested an 80-year-old district leader of a Pentecostal group. Lin 
Zilong was arrested on unknown charges. His family is permitted 
to bring him food daily, but have not received any indication 
about his possible sentencing and imprisonment.
    Has persecution against China's Christians increased ever since 
"most-favored" trading status was received in 1993? "I think we've 
gradually seen the situation worsen," said Jeff Taylor of the Bible-
smuggling group Open Doors. "The situation is pretty bad."
    Taylor said threats by the Clinton administration to rescind the 
trading status may not be effective, however, in reducing 
Christian persecution. "You can only push them so far," he 
explained. "The Chinese are not as open to political pressure. 
While they are progressive economically, there still seems to be 
this mindset that 'We'll close our doors again.' They really are 
serious about keeping internal control. It's not a surprise when 
they enact laws like this."
    The law he was referring to is China's new hard line against 
missionaries from overseas. China's Premier Li Peng has signed 
edicts restricting certain foreign missionary activity and 
prohibiting preaching without government approval.
    Nevertheless, "Amazing freedom exists for those who go 
through channels and take time to build relationships," East 
Gates Ministries leader Ned Graham has told the National and 
International Religion Report.
    He said East Gates mission workers have traveled legally in 
China for years and have distributed 200,000 Bibles in the last 15 
months. He says that the new law only penalizes unauthorized 
ministry by foreigners, but could be interpreted as legalizing 
authorized preaching and teaching by foreigners. He noted that 
"laws in China are in constant flux," said NIRR. "In some areas 
witnessing is tolerated, in others it is totally suppressed."
    Shortly after announcing the new edicts, Chinese police 
arrested seven foreign missionaries in central Henan province, 
then expelled the Rev. Dennis Balcombe, an American who leads 
an evangelistic outreach in Hong Kong. Authorities said the 
foreigners had violated the new measure just signed into law by 
Premier Li Peng.
    Balcombe has been traveling throughout China for the past 20 
years. He was arrested, along with the others, in a midnight raid 
on a home fellowship group. Seven Chinese Christians were also 
arrested in the raid. 
    Police said that in addition to Balcombe, they detained and 
released two other U.S. citizens, two Indonesians and two Hong 
Kong residents. "These people acknowledged that they had 
violated Chinese laws, and they guaranteed that they would not 
conduct such activities any more," Wu said at a weekly news 
briefing.
    Balcombe, however, says he has admitted to breaking no laws, 
nor has he signed any documents during his four days in 
detention. He reported that he was searched, held under guard in 
unheated quarters, deprived of sleep during days of interrogation, 
and denied permission to call his family or attorney.
    Balcombe told NIRR that money, not religious freedom, may 
have been the reason for his arrest. It seems that he had invested 
several thousand dollars in the state-run Department Store in 
Fangcheng Ñ one of the scores of new private enterprises 
constantly seeking Western investors.
    However, when Balcombe began asking about his investment, 
he was stonewalled by officials. He said he was told by Chinese 
friends that if he pressed the matter, he would be arrested on 
trumped-up charges. He had written off the loss and continued 
evangelistic work until his arrest. 
    He said nobody understands the new law completely. It is 
broad enough to allow authorities to arrest virtually anyone who 
shares the Gospel Ñ yet is vague enough to allow the 
government to claim that the practice of religion remains legal.
    This is certain: Foreigners "have no right to set up religious 
organizations, institutions, discussion groups or theology 
schools, neither can they convert Chinese people, ordain 
clergymen or engage in other religious activities," explained a 
spokesman for government's Religious Affairs Bureau.
    "The rules and regulations prohibit foreigners to post or to 
bring to China any religious printed matters and video tapes that 
jeopardise Chinese social public interest." Of course, "Chinese 
social public interest" could be defined as almost anything.
    Rep. Tom Lantos, D-Calif., chairman of the House Foreign 
Affairs subcommittee on human rights, has expressed "revulsion 
and outrage at China's vicious campaign of religious 
persecution." 
    He was echoed by Rep. Chris Smith ( R-N.J.), who added that 
"China hasn't even come close to making the progress that would 
allow the administration, in good conscience, to seek" an 
extension of trade privileges.
         
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