China: further crackdowns feared as President Xi gets 'serious' about religion

State control of faith groups in China is to be tightened even further, a Chinese priest has warned, following the assertion in a national newspaper that President Xi Jinping is "serious" about religion.

ADVERTISEMENT

Speaking to ucanews.com, a priest who identified himself as Father Peter said of the Chinese Communist Party's (CPC) interference with faith groups, "It's obvious that control on religions is to be tightened.
It was theory and slogans in the past," he added. "Now it becomes a real game to play."
According to ucanews, an article in China's official newspaper on religious issues, Zhongguo Mingzu Bao, alluded to a further crackdown on churches, clergy and dioceses in the country.
Published on October 8, the article also implied that Xi wants to "minimise foreign influence on Chinese institutions".
The news follows two years of increasingly strict regulations being placed on Christian groups in China, particularly in Zhejiang province in the east of the country, where up to 1,700 churches have had their crosses removed or been demolished.
China last year announced plans to introduce its own brand of national theology and in May 2015, Xi called for a curbing of outside influences. "We must manage religious affairs in accordance with the law and adhere to the principle of independence to run religious groups on our own accord," he said at a top-level CPC meeting. "Active efforts should be made to incorporate religions into socialist society."
A report released this week by the US Congressional-Executive Committee on China criticised the state of religious freedom in the country.
"China's 1.3 billion people have the greatest authority to pass judgment."
The US commission said China was moving further away from a rule of law system and had increased pressure on civil society. It also criticised Beijing's treatment of ethnic minorities.
"President Xi has presided over an extraordinary assault on the rule of law and civil society", US Representative Chris Smith, the committee chairman, said in an emailed statement. Florida senator and Republican presidential candidate Marco Rubio co-chairs the committee.
Activists say that under Xi, China is conducting its most intense crackdown on human rights in two decades.
Nearly 1,000 rights activists were detained last year – almost as many as in the previous two years combined, according to Chinese Human Rights Defenders, a coalition of Chinese and international activist groups.
China has long argued that it is unfairly singled out for criticism of its rights record and says other governments should examine their own records before making accusations.