Chinese police arrest Christians during Easter service
April 25th, 2011 - 12:13 pm ICT by ANIBeijing, Apr 25 (ANI): Chinese police have detained dozens of Christians who were trying to hold an outdoor Easter Sunday service on a banned site.
Security forces clashed with followers of a growing underground Protestant movement that was blocked from moving into a new meeting hall near Beijing, leading to three weeks of confrontation with the communist authorities.
According to the Telegraph, Shouwang Church leaders had issued a “fire and brimstone” cry for the congregation to worship outside the building even if it meant arrest and prosecution. The worshippers from the church were arrested and taken away in buses.
“Between 20 and 30 followers were taken away,” said Pastor Jin, who has been under house arrest for the past two weeks.
Up to 500 members of the Protestant house church movement, unregistered assemblies of worshippers that the government bans, have been detained in recent weeks.
Yesterday’s arrests were a continuation of the authorities’ increase in repression of dissenters to stop any chance of a revolution such as those seen in North Africa and the Middle East. (ANI)
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