In what appears to be action brought about by international protest, China’s communist government has finally notified the wife of an imprisoned Christian that he has been arrested.
According to Voice of the Martyrs, a nonprofit organization that aids persecuted Christians worldwide, Gou Qinghui, wife of jailed house-church Christian Xiao Bi-guang, received official notification of her husband’s arrest this week, even though the families of arrestees are supposed to be notified within 24 hours of an arrest. Xiao was taken into custody on Sept. 26.
The official notification was needed for Gou to hire an attorney to represent her husband, VOM said. The lawyer has been hired and was planning to visit Xiao in jail this week.
Xiao is charged with “subverting the national government.” The communist regime claims the delay in notification was due to having a wrong address for Gou, but VOM believes it was due to international pressure.
“This is a clear result of pressure put on by Christians around the world,” said VOM spokesman Todd Nettleton on the ministry’s website. “They had to come up with an excuse for why they didn’t follow their own law. Beijing PSB officers know where Brother Xiao lives. In fact, they have been monitoring his wife’s activities. They could have delivered this notice at any time during the past month, but they didn’t until international pressure mounted.
“Please pray for this Christian brother,” Nettleton continued, “and for his wife and 4-year-old son. The Chinese government doesn’t want the world to know how they treat people of faith, and this case shows how far they will go to silence those who speak out.”
Another Chinese Christian, Liu Feng Guang was arrested some time last week in Xiao-Shan, Zhejiang Province, VOM said. His apartment in Beijing was searched and police confiscated computers, cameras, an address book and other items.
Chinese officers reportedly are now calling all of the people listed in the address book or stored on Liu’s cell phone. Liu’s wife, Bi Yu-xia, was told he would be charged with “leaking state secrets,” but she has not received the official notification required by Chinese law.
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