The Chinese authorities often target Christians or Chinese citizens who flee the country but then return.
In August 2017, Jiang Han (pseudonym) returned to China. A member of The Church of Almighty God, a Chinese Christian new religious movement, he had returned to the country after fleeing years ago.
He stayed with his relatives, as he knew the authorities must have been watching his home. Indeed, in November, he received news that officers from the local police station in Puyang city in Henan had visited his home seeking to arrest him. The police soon found out that Mr. Jiang was staying with his relatives, but before they could arrest him, he had run away.
While the police intimidated the relatives as well, Mr. Jiang today lives a very difficult life. He cannot use any government service and has to hide his identity at every step.
The same year, Wu Huabiao, another member of the same church was in a similar state of anguish. He had fled to Japan but returned to China for medical treatment. But the moment he checked in at the hospital, the authorities were alerted, and Mr. Wu was arrested soon, even though he was partially paralyzed.
Such incidents of persecution of Christians have become common in the past few years. The CCP seeks to prevent them from fleeing abroad. If one is able to escape, the authorities do everything they can to get these people repatriated back to China. These people are then arrested and tortured for information.
In 2015, the police arrested Mr. Li, who was also a member of The Church of Almighty God upon his return to China from South Korea. He was tortured day and night for a week. His family was threatened as well, and Mr. Li was forced to go undercover and work as a CCP agent in South Korea. He was told to provide names of other members of his church and details about its top leadership.
Reported by Jiang Tao
