According to unconfirmed reports, the court notice stated that the reason for the postponement was that Pastor Zhang decided to have a new lawyer; this may refer to the fact that Zhang’s second lawyer, Zhao Yonglin, submitted his credentials later than lawyer Liu Weiguo.
The trial date for detained Protestant Pastor Zhang Shaojie, which was originally scheduled to take place on 28 January, has now been rescheduled for 12 February 2014.
According to unconfirmed reports, the court notice stated that the reason for the postponement was that Pastor Zhang decided to have a new lawyer; this may refer to the fact that Zhang’s second lawyer, Zhao Yonglin, submitted his credentials later than lawyer Liu Weiguo.
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Church members, lawyers and Christians visiting the family of detained Protestant Pastor Zhang Shaojie were beaten, harassed and detained by “hired thugs”, police and government agencies on 23 and 24 December 2013. On 23 December, Pastor Cao Nan of Shenzhen, who had travelled to Nanle in Henan province to conduct a service to pray for and rally support for Pastor Zhang’s case, was dragged from his car by local police, who beat him. He was then taken to a police station where he had pepper spray sprayed into his eyes, according to an interview with Radio Free Asia and reports by Chinese Human Rights Defenders. Lawyers representing Protestant Pastor Zhang Shaojie and members of his church have encountered various obstacles that have prevented them from meeting with their clients, who were detained by police on 16 November without any formal documentation. According to reports from China Aid and comments posted by activists on social media, lawyers who have tried to meet with Pastor Zhang and the other detainees have been faced with bureaucratic obstacles, hostile officials, and ill-timed “power outages”. Pastor Zhang, 48, belongs to the Nanle County Christian Church under the state-sanctioned Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM). On 16 November, police forcibly detained Pastor Zhang without any formal documentation, possibly in response to his work defending the vulnerable social groups. Zhang’s sisters and other church members were also detained, and several others were summoned to government offices. Then on 18 November, over a hundred church members and other supporters gathered in front of the city hall to demand Pastor Zhang’s unconditional release. Over one hundred relatives, church members and supporters of Pastor Zhang Shaojie, a Protestant pastor, joined in a protest on 18 November in Henan Province, China, to call for his release from prison. Pastor Zhang Shaojie, 48, belongs to the Nanle County Christian Church under the state-sanctioned Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM). On 16 November, police forcibly detained Pastor Zhang without any formal documentation. Some sources suggest that his detention was a result of his work defending the rights of vulnerable groups. In response, a number of relatives and church members gathered in front of the police station and were subsequently beaten. Zhang’s sisters were also detained, and several church members were summoned to government offices. On 18 November, over a hundred church members and other supporters gathered in front of the city hall to demand Pastor Zhang’s unconditional release. The current whereabouts of Pastor Zhang and his sisters are unknown. An expert on human rights in China suggests that country's latest edict claiming it is easing up on the one-child policy shouldn't be believed. In most instances, couples in the People's Republic of China can only have one baby – but there are some exceptions. China now says it's changing the policy to permit two children, but only under certain circumstances – such as at least one parent being an only child. Previously, both parents had to be an only child to qualify for the exemption. Church leader Li Shuangping, a leader at Linfen church, was beaten and threatened by unknown assailants on the night of 13 August, according to reports from China Aid. Li had been driving to his home in Shanxi Province and was forced to stop his car when a man who seemed to be intoxicated staggered into the road. He was then dragged into a black car which had pulled up alongside his car, tied up, blindfolded, and pinned down while three men beat him around his head and body. One man also threatened to kill Li and his family members, including his children. Li was then thrown out of the car. The United Nations is being asked to take action against family-planning policies in China that harm women and children. A formal complaint has been lodged with the UN body that deals with women's rights by Reggie Littlejohn of Women's Rights Without Frontiers. The complaint lists many violent incidents related to enforcement of the one-child policy, as well as abortions performed on the basis of gender. Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW) is concerned about a crackdown on unregistered Christian meetings in Xinjiang, northwest China, in the last five months, amidst high levels of tension and outbreaks of violence in the region. According to reports from China Aid Association, a number of unregistered Christian groups have been closed down, fined or had their members detained by police in Xinjiang in the last five months. A shallow earthquake struck a dry, hilly farming area in western China early Monday, killing at least 54 people, injuring nearly 300, and destroying thousands of homes, the local government said. The quake hit near the city of Dingxi in Gansu province, a hilly region of mountains, desert and pastureland about 1,233 kilometers (766 miles) west of Beijing. Residents described shaking windows and swinging lights but there was relatively little major damage or panic in the city itself. Tremors were felt in the provincial capital of Lanzhou 177 kilometers (110 miles) north, and as far away as Xi'an, 400 kilometers (250 miles) to the east. In an attempt to set the record straight about details in recent news reports on blind legal activist Chen Guangcheng's departure from New York University, ChinaAid president Bob Fu on Friday released a lengthy statement in which he clarified and corrected facts in a report by The New York Times. The statement also contains Fu's responses to other reports and comments that have been in the media related to Chen's announcement last month that NYU was forcing him to leave due to pressure from the Chinese Communist government (see www.chinaaid.org/2013/06/blind-legal-activist-chen-guangcheng.html). |
Walter Blackwood
Associate Pastor with The Bridge Community of Faith in Kelowna BC Canada. Archives
May 2017
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