bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

paywallTypes

createdDate

publishedDate

urlAlias

moreOnThisArticles

sponsorType

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

articleSpeeches

socialHeadline

headline

images

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

sponsor

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Agence France-Presse

Reuters

A well-known rights lawyer has appeared on state television confessing to crimes after a months-long disappearance, the latest case in the country’s widening crackdown on dissent.
Zhang Kai had represented a group of Christians who were detained for suspected financial crimes last year after they resisted the demolition of crosses.
Heavily Christian Wenzhou, in Zhejiang, was the site of protests in 2014 over a government campaign to demolish crosses.
On a news programme on state-controlled Wenzhou TV on Thursday night, Zhang confessed to encouraging Christians to come together to “protect their rights” after the authorities removed crosses from churches.
“I really regret doing these things, I feel very remorseful,” Zhang said. “These things violated China’s law and violated my personal integrity as a lawyer, and they harmed societal structure and national security.”
Police in Wenzhou could not be reached for comment, and Zhang’s location was not clear.
In October, US Secretary of State John Kerry said Zhang, who had represented Christian groups, was detained shortly before a planned meeting in August with David Saperstein, the US ambassador for international religious freedom, who was visiting China.

Suspects accused of crimes in high-profile cases are often shown confessing on state television. Rights groups have said these confessions, which usually take place long before a trial, violate the accused’s right to due process.
Authorities in the region have said crosses were removed because they violated regulations against illegal structures. Rights groups say demolishing crosses restricts Christianity and religious freedoms.
China officially guarantees freedom of religion though authorities are sometimes suspicious of religious groups. State-run website Wenzhou Online said Zhang had been identified as the “mastermind” behind a series of “illegal religious gatherings”, citing information from the city’s public security bureau.
READ MORE: Authorities holding Chinese lawyer who helped Christians fight cross take-downs, friend says
It accused him of “accepting foreign training”, “encouraging people to confront the government”, and cheating people out of money, among other claims.
The website quoted his alleged confession.
“I also warn those so-called human rights lawyers to take me as a warning and not collude with foreigners, take money from foreign organisations or be engaged in activities that break the law or harm national security and interests,” he continued, according to the report.
The Communist Party has reasserted controls over civil society since President Xi Jinping took power, detaining more than 130 human rights lawyers and legal staff over the past year. A top Chinese pastor came under investigation last month on suspicion of embezzling funds after he publicly opposed a cross removal campaign.
Experts say there are up to 60 million Protestants in China, divided between official and unregistered churches.
Reuters, Agence France-Presse





The pope visits Hong Kong for 3 hours in 1970 – from the SCMP archive

Disgraced Shaolin Temple abbot Shi Yongxin closer to prosecution over money scandals

How ancient Chinese sects have foretold Rapture-like divine ends for millennia

Religion must align with law for ethnic and social harmony in China, Xi says

Religion in China

Chinese Christian rights lawyer accused of ‘masterminding illegal religious gatherings’

Rights activist Zhang Kai was detained in August last year. Photo: SCMP Pictures

Guangming Church at Aojiang, Pingyang county, Wenzhou city, Zhejiang province. Because the huge red cross at been seen from the expressway nearby( left side), so the local government asks the church to take down the cross. 23JUN14 === Photo by Simon Song ===

Authorities holding Chinese lawyer who helped Christians fight cross take-downs, friend says

Lawyer Zhang Kai has long been a staunch advocate for the Christian community on the mainland.  Photo Simon Song

US calls for China to release Christian lawyer ahead of President’s Xi Jinping’s state visit

The August 25 detention of lawyer Zhang Kai (above) and other religious figures has been called 'alarming'  by  David Saperstein, the US ambassador at-large for religious freedom. Photo: Simon Song

Samantha Power, the US Ambassador to the UN, highlights the case of prominent Chinese lawyer Wang Yu - detained in July but yet to be charged - at the start of the campaign to release 20 women prisoners of conscience. Photo: AFP 

The removal of crosses from churches in Zhejiang province has been criticised as unconstitutional and infringing upon the right of religious freedom

Prominent Chinese lawyer Wang Yu was detained in July, along with her husband, and has yet to be charged with a crime. Photo: Reuters

David Saperstein, the US ambassador at-large for religious freedom, said he had been due to meet lawyer Zhang Kai in China on August 26, the day after he was detained. Photo: David Saperstein/Twitter

News

China

Politics