Refugee Review Tribunal AUSTRALIA RRT RESEARCH RESPONSE Research Response Number: CHN32261 Country: China Date: 27 August 2007. Keywords: China – Fujian – Lianjiang County – Christians This response was prepared by the Research & Information Services Section of the Refugee Review Tribunal (RRT) after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the RRT within time constraints. This response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. This research response may not, under any circumstance, be cited in a decision or any other document. Anyone wishing to use this information may only cite the primary source material contained herein. Questions 1. Please provide information on Christians in Huangqi Town and Fengcheng Town of Lianjiang County in Fujian and their treatment by the authorities. 2. Please provide information on Huangqi Broadcasting & TV Co (may be called Lianjiang Broadcasting & TV Co). RESPONSE 1. Please provide information on Christians in Huangqi Town and Fengcheng Town of Lianjiang County in Fujian and their treatment by the authorities. [This response includes an overview of the situation of Christians in Fujian Province at 1.2] Lianjiang (连江) is a county on the coast of Fujian Province, China, close to the provincial capital Fuzhou (administratively Lianjiang county is part of Fuzhou City). A map of the county is at Attachment 1. A short profile of the county from Wikipedia1 is attached (‘Lianjiang’ 2007, Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lianjiang – Updated 22 May 2007 – Accessed 27 August 2007 – Attachment 2). According to the profile, the county population is 620,000. The Applicant is from Fengcheng Town. Fengcheng Town (凤城镇), which is also called Lianjiang Town on some maps2, is the main town in the county. Fengcheng Town as an 1 Users should be aware that Wikipedia is a Web-based free-content encylopaedia which is written collaboratively by volunteers. The Research Service recommends that users of Wikipedia familiarise themselves with the regulatory practices which Wikipedia employs as a preventative measure against vandalism, bias and inaccuracy. For more information, see the recommended background reading available in the Wikipedia Topical Information Package. 2 Many towns in Fujian province have two names. Some maps use one, some the other. administrative division would also include some rural villages close to the main town. Huangqi (黄岐镇) is a town at the end of a peninsula. Fuzhou, Fengcheng and Huangqi are shown on the map below (also at Attachment 3): 1.1 Christians in Lianjiang County (especially Huangqi Town, Fengcheng Town) Very few reports were found of Christians in Huangqi Town, Fengcheng Town or Lianjiang County. Tony Lambert, an expert on the Protestant community in China, in his book on Christianity in China (Lambert, Tony 2006, China’s Christian Millions, Monarch Books, Oxford – Attachment 4) estimates that there are 20,000 Christians with 27 churches and three (other) meeting points in Lianjiang County (p.241), but gives no other information about the situation in that county. In 2000, the Political Counsellor of the Canadian Embassy, Beijing made a fact-finding mission to the Fuzhou Metropolitan Counties of Lianjiang, Mawei, Fuqing, and Changle to examine issues including religious freedom there. A report of this visit is attached (Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada 2000, Report of a fact finding mission to Fuzhou by political counsellor, Canadian Embassy, Beijing, 23 March – Attachment 5). On religious freedom the report states: There is a high degree of religious tolerance in this part of China. In Changle county only 10 of 80 Catholic parishes are affiliated with the state sanctioned Catholic Patriotic Association (CPA). The other 70 remaining loyal to Rome are technically illegal and therefore “underground churches,” but reportedly these congregations are not harassed by the local authorities at present. Reports of the recent arrest of Yang Shudao, Archbishop of the Fuzhou Archdiocese, who has consistently refused to cooperate with the CPA, is a cause for concern. Archbishop Yang has served close to 30 years in detention in China since his first arrest in 1955. However his arrests have not directly impacted on the activities of local congregations in the four rural counties which are the subject of this report. In recent years Catholics there have been allowed to profess their faith in accordance with their own consciences. There is no indication that this is about to change. Nevertheless, the Embassy will continue to monitor the situation closely. Various forms of Protestant religious expression thrive in metro Fuzhou. The numbers of faithful grow rapidly year by year. There is much evidence of construction of new churches to meet the increasing demand for places of worship. Diversity of religious expression seems more extensive here than in other parts of China, including the indigenous “Little Flock” sect and Seventh Day Adventists Seventh Day Adventist church visited on request of Political Counsellor after spotting it from the car while travelling in Fuqing County is shown at right We were apprised of “an extreme antiCommunist” Christian sect “the Huhan” faction that was declared illegal and suppressed in the 1980s, but this group is evidently very small and largely inactive now. … Civil Affairs: Questioning ensued on measures to address “illegal” associations. … Over half of the places of religious worship in the area are “as yet” unregistered (photo shows discussion with Protestant Ministers at former Anglican Church in Longtian Town, Fuqing County re: status of unregistered “meeting places” in local villages that are affiliated with this church that receives an average of 1,200 worshippers every Sunday. This discussion was videotaped [the sole incidence of this intrusion], but the presence of the camera did not seem to inhibit the frankness of discussion. The stop at this Church was at my request and clearly not anticipated in advance). This situation does not seem to trouble the local authorities. In other parts of China congregations at unregistered places of worship are periodically subject to police harassment on direction of the local bureaux for Civil Affairs. No indication that this has been the case in the four counties visited was found. Extensive interviews with Christians throughout the visit suggested that relations with local authorities have been consistently nonconfrontational in recent years. These four counties have a high percentage of Christian faithful compared with other parts of Fujian, a legacy of a strong presence of British and American Christian missionaries operating out of Fuzhou in the preCommunist period. It is interesting that such these counties, whose main distinction from others nearby is their “Christianess,” are the source of irregular immigration to Canada. … Several churches were visited in all four counties many of these spontaneous visits at Political Counsellor’s request (“please stop the car here, I’m going in”). In all of these churches, local Christians and ministers were engaged in private discussions. Officials responsible for Religious Affairs were interviewed in three of the four counties, the exception being Mawei (at right: massive new Protestant Cathedral with seating for 1,600 in downtown Changle built in 1997 located walking distance from 1904 church of comparable size currently still in use and under renovation). As with the birth control policy, Central policy inhibiting freedom of religious expression does not appear to be much followed here. Discussions with Ministers confirmed that forms of worship variant from the form of post denominational Protestant service endorsed by the state supported China Christian Council and Protestant Three Self Movement are tolerated here (as they are not in other parts of the country). Most of the Catholic churches have not affiliated with the Catholic Patriotic Association and remain loyal to Rome. These Catholic churches are not able to be registered. On questioning local officials indicated that “we try to convince them to affiliate with the CPA, but if they won’t, there is nothing we can do” an encouragingly enlightened attitude. The only report found in the sources consulted of any action against Christians in Lianjiang concerns a 2002 incident involving the underground Catholic Church. In July 2002, according to the Cardinal Kung Foundation, 31 underground Roman Catholics were arrested in Dong-An village, Guantou Township, Lianjiang County in Fujian Province: Laypersons face severe persecution as well. In July 2002, 31 underground Roman Catholics, 26 of whom were students under the age of 18, were arrested during a summer vacation catechism class in a private home. The arrest occurred in Dong-An village, Guantou Township, Lianjiang County in Fujian Province. Among the 31 arrested were a Catholic nun, Sister CHEN Mei, 27 years of age, and four chaperons. The adults and students were all thrown into Lianjian County prison. The children and chaperons were released after one day. The status of Sister CHEN Mei is unknown. In May 2002, six Roman Catholics from Wenzhou, Zhejiang went to DongLu in Baoding, Hebei for a pilgrimage and were arrested by the authorities. They were fined a total of $3,850 for the “illegal pilgrimage.” (‘The Cardinal Kung Foundation’ (undated), The Cardinal Kung Foundation website. http://www.cardinalkungfoundation.org/index2.html#State%20Control – Accessed