Released on = November 25, 2005, 2:12 pm

Press Release Author = Archbishop Gary Beaver

Industry = Government

Press Release Summary = Pastor Cai Zhuohua sentenced to three years, and his wife,
Xiao Yunfei, two years in prison for leading six Christian house churches in the
Beijing area.

Press Release Body = Cai Zhuohua had already been imprisoned for over one year
before receiving a three years sentence for his Christian faith. Archbishop Gary Beaver highlighted the charges through his global campaign to help stem Christian persecution, and stated " Pastor Cai has been found guilty of "illegal business operation" after he was arrested for "overseas religious infiltration," which actually means that he was distributing Bibles to Christians in China" All Christian faiths are presently illegal in China, with the exception of the Government controlled Chinese Patriotic Church.

Old Catholic Church of Great Britain Bishops see this latest conviction as a signal
of escalating persecution against the entire house church phenomenon in China.

The Chinese Communist Party's "Amity Foundation" is the only authorised printer
legally permitted to print limited numbers of Bibles.

One of the defence team lawyer's, Wang Yi, pointed out that Chinese law is
fundamentally different from that of democratic countries. For one, the CCP believes
that law has nothing to do with rationality and freedom, and it is the manifestation
of ruling class' willpower, which is carried out by violence. Another legal team
member, Li Shixiong stated "that the fundamental factor driving Cai's persecution is
the Chinese Communist regime's atheism. In other words, the CCP cannot allow the
Chinese people to believe in God, because if they did, the people might no longer
believe in and rely upon the Chinese Communist Party."

Archbishop Gary Beaver made a simple demand "We shall continue to advocate religious freedom, globally denouncing religious persecution, and call for our Governments to
review foreign policy towards those Countries that persecute on the grounds of
religious differences."


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