On January 18, 2024, the Fuyang Maizhong Reformed Church in Fuyang, Anhui province, faced another police raid during a gathering where children were praying and singing. Officers from the Economic and Technological Development Zone Branch of the Fuyang Municipal Public Security Bureau conducted the raid, detaining three Christians leading the children: Dai Chuanli, Wang Dandan, and Ma Jiahui. Subsequent to their detention, the police searched their homes. The Public Security authorities placed the three Christians in administrative detention for fifteen days, pending further investigations.

This incident is part of a series of troubles for the Fuyang Maizhong Reformed Church, starting in 2018 when its leader signed a protest against the Regulation on Religious Affairs, implemented on February 1 of that year. Since then, the church has faced surveillance and harassment. On October 8, 2021, Elder Chang Shun was taken away by the police during a prayer meeting, and he was administratively detained in September 2023 due to his vaccination status. He was released but detained again on November 3, 2023. Two other church members, Han Meng and Han Xuri, were also detained on the same day.

Moreover, on October 21, 2023, an office building where the church gathered for a Bible study session was raided, leading to the detention of seven believers for several hours. Members of the Fuyang Maizhong Reformed Church continue to report persistent harassment by the police.

The detention of Dai Chuanli, Wang Dandan, and Ma Jiahui was publicized on social media, leading to the summoning and interrogation of those who posted about it by the police. This situation is part of a broader nationwide crackdown on house churches that refuse to align with the government-controlled Three-Self Church. The crackdown follows a strategy initiated by Chinese President Xi Jinping at the National Conference on Work Related to Religious Affairs in December 2021.

This post is based on the information of the magazine “Bitter Winter”.