A deputy from Xiangyang city in the National People’s Congress (NPC) was stripped of her mandate for being a member of a house church.
Yang Hua (pseudonym) was a local National People’s Congress (NPC) deputy from Xiangyang city in Hubei Province as well as a regular member of a house church. In 2012, her NPC deputy credentials were revoked because of her religious belief. Since then, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) police continue to persecute her, even ordering her neighbors to report on her.
An insider has revealed that on August 14, 2012, Yang Hua attended a village Party representatives meeting, during which the village secretary, Mr. Zhang, pointed at Yang Hua in front of everyone and said, “If you keep believing in the Lord I’ll send you to the police right away! Effective today, don’t attend meetings!” Everyone who attended the meeting was talking about her—it was very humiliating. Her NPC deputy credentials were subsequently revoked.
Yang Hua was repeatedly frightened and threatened by village cadres starting as early as 2010. Mr. Zhang, the village secretary, threated her with arrests repeatedly. The CCP government’s oppression has not made her give up her faith. Yang Hua said that having faith in China means facing the government’s persecution and control at every turn and lacking any personal freedom. “Even a regular gathering to worship God has become a great luxury. The Chinese constitution very clearly stipulates the freedom of belief, but that is just a lie.”
On June 14 and 17, 2018, police officers drove to Yang Hua’s home and asked her downstairs neighbors about her comings and goings, and if she still believed in God. Having learned about this, Yang Hua feels scared and insecure even in her own home.
Reported by Shen Xiang
Shen Xiang (uses pseudonyms for security reasons) was born in Hunan Province and is now 35 years old. She is an independent journalist. Ever since childhood, Shen Xiang has had a passion for writing. After graduating from high school, Shen Xiang started writing novels, and her works have been serialized in local literary journals and received critical acclaim. Shen Xiang began writing a commentary column in 2012. In 2017, affected by the Liu Xiaobo incident, She became dedicated to writing various news reports on human rights issues in China. In June 2018, Shen Xiang joined Bitter Winter and became a special correspondent of Bitter Winter covering Hunan Province and other regions in China.