Embassy of the United States Beijing, China

CHINA 

Reports on Hong Kong, Macau, and Tibet are appended at the end of this report. 

The constitution states that Chinese citizens "enjoy freedom of religious belief." It also bans the state, public organizations, and individuals from compelling citizens to believe in, or not believe in, any religion. The constitution and laws protect "normal" religious activities," which are overseen by the five (Buddhist, Taoist, Muslim, Catholic, and Protestant) state-sanctioned "patriotic religious associations." By law only they may register religious groups and places of worship. Chinese Communist Party (CCP) members are discouraged from participating in religious activities. The government permits proselytizing in registered places of worship and in private settings. Proselytizing in public, unregistered places of worship, or by foreigners is not permitted. Some religious or spiritual groups are outlawed, including the spiritual movement Falun Gong. Other religious groups, such as Protestant "house churches" or Catholics loyal to the Vatican, are not outlawed, but are not permitted to openly hold religious services unless they affiliate with a patriotic religious association. In some parts of the country, authorities have charged religious believers unaffiliated with a patriotic religious association with "illegal religious activities" or "disrupting social stability." Punishments for these charges range from fines to imprisonment. 

During the year the government increased the severe religious repression in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (XUAR). Following unrest in July 2009 authorities pledged to crackdown more on "illegal religious activities," which included unauthorized religious instruction and wearing religious clothing. Authorities temporarily closed some mosques in the XUAR. During the reporting period the government's repression of religious freedom remained severe in the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR) and other Tibetan areas. In other parts of the country, the government tightened controls on religious groups during "sensitive periods" such as the 60th anniversary of the founding of the PRC, the 20th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre, and the Shanghai Expo. During these periods, some house church groups reported that government authorities pressured them to stop meeting, while others reported no bans on regular meetings. 

Both Uighur Muslims and Tibetan Buddhist monks and nuns reported increased societal discrimination around these sensitive periods, including being denied lodging by hotelkeepers. 

In its 2009-2010 National Human Rights Action Plan (NHRAP), the government stated that it would "encourage and support religious circles in launching social welfare programs [and] exploring methods and channels for religions to better serve society and promote the people's well-being." The central government supported the social service work of registered religious groups by publicly stating the positive role that religious groups can play in society. Certain overseas faith-based aid groups were allowed to deliver services in coordination with local authorities and domestic registered religious groups. Public discussion of house churches in official media and at academic conferences also increased. 

The Department of State, the U.S. embassy in Beijing, and U.S. consulates general in Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang, and Wuhan consistently urged the government to expand the scope of religious freedom in keeping with the rights codified in the constitution and internationally recognized norms. U.S. officials condemned abuses and acknowledged positive trends. U.S. officials in the country and Washington met with religious believers, family members of religious prisoners, and religious freedom defenders. The U.S. embassy protested the imprisonment of individuals on charges related to their religious practice.  Religious freedom was one of the main issues discussed during the May 2010 U.S.-China Human Rights Dialogue. U.S. officials encouraged the government to address specific policies that restricted the freedom of religion of Tibetan Buddhists and Uighur Muslims. Since 1999, the Secretary of State has designated the country a "Country of Particular Concern" (CPC) under the International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) for particularly severe violations of religious freedom. 

Section I. Religious Demography 

The country has an area of 3.5 million square miles and a population of 1.3 billion. A February 2007 survey conducted by researchers in Shanghai and reported in state-run media concluded that 31.4 percent of citizens ages 16 and over are religious believers. About two hundred million respondents to the survey described themselves as Buddhist, Taoist, or worshippers of folk gods. In its report to the United Nations Human Rights Council during its Universal Periodic Review session in February 2009, the government stated there were 100 million religious believers in the country. It is difficult to estimate the number of Buddhists and Taoists, because they do not have congregational memberships, and many practice exclusively at home. A 2007 Chinese public opinion polling firm found that 11 to 16 percent of adults identify themselves as Buddhists, and less than 1 percent of adults identify themselves as Taoists. The Xinhua news agency estimated there are 100 million Buddhists in the country. 

According to the State Administration for Religious Affairs (SARA), there are more than 21 million Muslims in the country. Independent estimates range as high as 50 million or more. According to SARA there are approximately 36,000 Islamic places of worship in the country (more than half of which are in the XUAR), more than 45,000 imams nationwide, and 10 Islamic schools. The government subsidizes the construction of state-sanctioned places of worship and religious schools. 

There are 10 predominantly Muslim ethnic groups in the country. Certain Muslim communities have adopted the practice of designating separate mosques for female worshippers. According to media reports, the Islamic Association of China (IAC) licenses female imams. The 2000 census reported a total of 20.3 million members of Muslim nationalities, of which again 96 percent belonged to just three groups: Hui 9.8 million, Uighurs 8.4 million, and Kazakhs 1.25 million. Hui Muslims live throughout the country but are concentrated primarily in the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, Qinghai, and Gansu Provinces. Uighur Muslims live primarily in the XUAR. 

According to statistics reported by SARA in June 2010, the official Protestant population is 16 million. Government officials stated there are more than 50,000 Protestant churches registered under the Three-Self Patriotic Movement (TSPM), the state-approved Protestant patriotic association, and 18 TSPM theological schools. The Pew Research Center estimated in 2007 that 50 million to 70 million Christians practice in unregistered religious gatherings/house churches. A Chinese scholar estimated that the number of Protestants, including those in both registered and unregistered churches, was nearly 90 million. 

According to SARA, there are more than 5.3 million Catholics worshipping in sites registered by the Catholic Patriotic Association (CPA). The Holy Spirit Study Center in Hong Kong estimated there are 12 million Catholics in the country. Official sources reported that the CPA has more than 70 bishops, nearly 3,000 priests and nuns, 6,000 churches and meeting places, and 12 seminaries. Of the 97 dioceses in the country, 40 reportedly did not have an officiating bishop in 2007, and more than 30 bishops were over 80 years of age. 

Local governments have legalized certain religions and practices in addition to the five nationally recognized religions. Examples include Orthodox Christianity in some provinces, including Xinjiang, Heilongjiang, Zhejiang, and Guangdong. Some ethnic minorities have retained or reclaimed traditional religions, such as Dongba among the Naxi people in Yunnan and Buluotuo among the Zhuang in Guangxi. The worship of the folk deity Mazu reportedly has been reclassified as "cultural heritage" rather than religious practice. 

Falun Gong is a self-described spiritual discipline that combines qigong (a traditional Chinese exercise discipline) with the teachings of founder Li Hongzhi. Prior to the Government's 1999 ban of Falun Gong, it estimated that there were 70 million adherents. 

Section II. Status of Religious Freedom 

Legal/Policy Framework 

The government has signed, but not ratified, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights which provides the right to belief and manifest belief through "worship, observance, and practice." The constitution protects the right to hold or not hold a religious belief, and protects "normal religious activities." It is not possible to sue the government on the basis of the religious freedom protections in the constitution. Religious groups were vulnerable to action by local officials who often regulate through administrative orders. A provision in the criminal law allows the state to sentence government officials to up to two years in prison if they violated religious freedom. 

The central government banned certain religious and spiritual groups. Some individuals belonging to or supporting banned groups have been imprisoned. The criminal law defines banned groups as "evil cults." A 1999 judicial explanation stated this term "refers to those illegal groups that have been found using religions, Qigong or other things as a camouflage, deifying their leading members, recruiting and controlling their members, and deceiving people by molding and spreading superstitious ideas, and endangering the society." There are no public criteria for determining, or procedures for challenging, such a designation. The government maintained its bans on the Guan Yin (also known as Guanyin Famin or the Way of the Goddess of Mercy); Zhong Gong (a qigong exercise discipline); and Falun Gong. The government also considered several Protestant Christian groups to be "evil cults," including the "Shouters," Eastern Lightning, the Society of Disciples (Mentu Hui), Full Scope Church, Spirit Sect, New Testament Church, Three Grades of Servants (or San Ban Pu Ren), Association of Disciples, Lord God Sect, Established King Church, Unification Church, Family of Love, and the South China Church. 

At the national level, the United Front Work Department (UFWD), SARA, and the Ministry of Civil Affairs provide policy "guidance and supervision" on the implementation of the 1998 Religious Affairs Regulations and 2005 Regulations on Social Organizations that allow patriotic religious associations to engage in activities such as building places of worship, training religious leaders, publishing literature, and providing social services to local communities. Patriotic religious leaders have a close relationship with the state, are sometimes paid by the government, and are required to support the leadership of the CCP. They also serve in the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, an advisory body that provides non-CCP advice to the central government. 

Religious groups independent of the five patriotic religious associations have great difficulty obtaining legal status and are vulnerable to coercive and punitive action by Public Security Bureau (PSB) and Religious Affairs Bureau (RAB). In some parts of the country, local authorities tacitly approved of the activities of unregistered groups and did not interfere with them. In some rural areas, unregistered churches held worship services attended by hundreds. In other areas, local officials punished the same activities by confiscating and destroying property or imprisoning leaders and worshippers. 

Several religious leaders reported that their applications for registration were rejected because they would not affiliate with a patriotic religious association although officials pressured them to do so. They cited the politicization of religion as a primary reason for their reluctance to affiliate, including reconciling Christianity with socialism. House church leaders expressed concern that they would have to deny certain theological beliefs because of the Three-Self Patriotic Movement/China Christian Council (TSPM/CCC) prohibition on denominations. They also cited reluctance to accept restrictions on evangelism and religious sacraments. 

Since 2005 SARA has publicly acknowledged that family and friends have the right to meet at home for worship, including prayer and Bible study without registering with the government. This statement has been posted on SARA's Web site at various times. Respect for this policy at the provincial, county, and local levels was uneven, and there were several reported cases of local officials disrupting religious meetings in private homes.

Individuals seeking to enroll at an official seminary or other institution of religious learning must obtain the support of the patriotic religious association. The government requires students to demonstrate "political reliability," and political issues were included in examinations of graduates of all religious schools. Both registered and unregistered religious groups reported a shortage of trained clergy.

Patriotic religious association-approved Catholic and Protestant seminarians, Muslim clerics, and some Buddhist monks were allowed to travel abroad for additional religious study. However, religious workers not affiliated with a patriotic religious association continued to face difficulties obtaining passports or approval to study abroad. 

The government and the Holy See have not established diplomatic relations, and there was no Vatican representative in the country. The Catholic Patriotic Association (CPA) does not recognize the authority of the Holy See to appoint bishops; therefore, approximately 40 Catholic bishops remained independent of the CPA and operated unofficially. The CPA has allowed the Vatican discreet input in selecting some bishops, and an estimated 90 percent of CPA bishops have reconciled with the Vatican. Nevertheless, in some locations, local authorities reportedly pressured unregistered Catholic priests and believers to renounce ordinations approved by the Holy See. The Vatican has also given official approval to the majority of Catholic bishops appointed by the government through "apostolic mandates." 

Faith-based charities were required to register with the government. According to several groups, a prerequisite for registration was obtaining sponsorship of the local religious affairs bureau, rather than of a bureau with technical expertise in a relevant field such as health or medicine. These groups were often also required to affiliate with one of the five patriotic religious associations. Unregistered groups were not permitted to openly raise funds, hire employees, open bank accounts, or own property. 

The government supported social service work by registered religious groups. However, religious groups not affiliated with an official patriotic religious association reported difficulties registering as nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) or performing social service work. The Catholic Social Service Centre of the Diocese of Xi'An and Caritas International provided relief to victims of the April 2010 earthquake in Yushu, Qinghai Province. The Amity Foundation, a state-approved, Protestant-affiliated group registered as a national charity, continued to rebuild villages affected by the 2008 earthquake in Sichuan Province. 

Registered religious organizations were allowed to compile and print religious materials for internal use. In order to distribute religious materials publicly, an organization must follow national printing regulations, which restrict the publication and distribution of literature with religious content. The government limited distribution of Bibles to TSPM/CCC entities such as churches and seminaries. Individuals could not order Bibles directly from publishing houses. Members of unregistered churches reported that the supply and distribution of Bibles was inadequate, particularly in rural locations. The government authorized the publication of at least 1,000 other Christian titles. 

Under the RRA and regulations on publishing, religious texts published without authorization, including Bibles and Qur'ans, may be confiscated and unauthorized publishing houses closed. Authorities often confiscated Bibles in raids on house churches. Customs officials continued to monitor the importation of Bibles and other religious materials. In the XUAR, government authorities at times restricted the sales of the Qur'an. There were reports that XUAR regulations banned Uighur-language editions of the Bible. 

In 2005 the Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that parents were permitted to instruct children under the age of 18 in religious beliefs and that they may participate in religious activities. The teaching of atheism in schools is allowed. In the XUAR, there were widespread reports of prohibitions on children participating in religious activities. The Xinjiang Implementing Measures of the Law on the Protection of Minors barred parents from allowing children to engage in religious activities, but children have been observed at Friday prayers in parts of the XUAR. 

The law does not prohibit religious believers from holding public office. However, the CCP has stated that its members who belong to religious organizations are subject to expulsion. The PRC Labor Law states that job applicants shall not face discrimination in job hiring based on factors including religious belief. However, religious believers reported that employers openly discriminated against them. There were widespread reports that employers, both local and foreign, were discouraged from hiring Falun Gong practitioners. There were also several reports from Protestant Christians that they were terminated by their employers due to their religious activities. 

Some religious adherents opposed the state's family planning policy for reasons of religious belief and practice. In some areas of the country, government population control agencies required women to use contraception, be sterilized, and have abortions if their pregnancies violated government population control regulations. 

In the XUAR, the Chinese government concerns over "separatism, religious extremism, and terrorism" have contributed to repressive restrictions on religious practices by Uighur Muslims. Authorities often failed to distinguish between peaceful religious practice and criminal or terrorist activities. It remains difficult to determine whether particular raids, detentions, arrests, or judicial punishments targeted those seeking political goals, the right to worship, or those engaged in criminal activities. In contrast, Hui Muslims in Ningxia, Gansu, Qinghai, and Yunnan Provinces engaged in religious practice with less government interference. 

Foreign residents who belonged to religious faiths not officially recognized by the government were generally permitted to practice their religions. 

The constitution states that religious bodies and affairs are not "subject to any foreign domination." According to the Rules for the Implementation of the Provisions on the Administration of Religious Activities of Aliens within the Territory of the People's Republic of China, foreigners may not develop religious followers among local citizens, conduct religious activities at unregistered sites, or conduct religious activities with local citizens at temporary sites for religious activities. 

The government allowed some foreign educational institutions to provide religious materials to Chinese leaders. Dallas Theological Seminary hosted online courses for clergy through the TSPM-run Yanjing Theological Seminary. Bible Study Fellowship (BSF) provided materials for clergy affiliated with both registered and unregistered religious groups. The CCC approved BSF's request to provide Bible study classes in Beijing, and BSF reported that approximately 50 percent of those in attendance were from house churches. 

Restrictions on Religious Freedom 

During the reporting period, government repression of religious freedom in the XUAR increased and remained severe in Tibetan areas. Official tolerance for groups associated with Buddhism and Taoism has been greater than that for groups associated with other religions. The government continued to restrict the growth of house church networks and cross-congregational affiliations. 

Following the July 2009 unrest, the XUAR government increased political training for imams, tightened restrictions on the religious activities of government workers, teachers, and students, and suppressed "unauthorized" religious activities. Authorities reportedly confiscated the passports of some Uighur Muslims which made it impossible for them to travel to Saudi Arabia for the Hajj. 

Authorities closed some mosques temporarily and restricted construction on some others. The Xinjiang Academy of Social Sciences held a mandatory training course for all imams in the XUAR, which included political issues. According to a January 2010 report, government officials in Aksu increased their oversight of mosques and regulation of sermon content. A May 2010 instruction on the Ili Party Committee Organization Department Web site forbade students from wearing religious clothing, participating in religious activities, fasting, and listening to or viewing materials with "reactionary content." In September 2009 the Bayingol Mongol Autonomous Prefecture implemented restrictions on elementary school students and teachers believing in religion, participating in religious activities, and wearing religious clothes. According to a May report on a government Web site in Aksu, officials battled against "religious fanaticism" by publicly destroying 34 scarves, 42 items of clothing, and 53 books. XUAR officials called on young persons not to wear beards or scarves, according to an international media report. Government offices in Turpan district and Shule (Qeshqer Yengisheher) county in the XUAR issued job advertisements for teachers and performing artists that required they "not believe in a religion" and "not participate in religious activities." 

Blogs of a number of religious groups and individuals were periodically blocked during the reporting period. 

Abuses of Religious Freedom 

During the reporting period, officials continued to scrutinize and, in some cases, harass registered and unregistered religious and spiritual groups. The government detained, arrested, or sentenced to prison a number of religious leaders and adherents for activities related to their religious practice. These activities included assembling for religious worship, expressing religious beliefs in public and in private, and publishing religious texts. 

The government denied detaining or arresting anyone solely because of his or her religion. Local authorities often used administrative detention, such as confinement at reeducation through labor (RTL) camps, to punish members of unregistered religious groups. The government also disbarred a number of attorneys who advocated on behalf of religious freedom and imprisoned other religious freedom activists. The family members of some religious leaders and religious freedom activists were also harassed or detained. 

The whereabouts of attorney Gao Zhisheng were unknown at the end of the reporting period. Gao defended Falun Gong members and house church Christians. He disappeared in February 2009. NGOs reported that he had been tortured during imprisonment in 2007. In March 2010 he briefly reappeared and told foreign reporters he would no longer defend human rights cases or criticize the government. In April 2010 Gao disappeared again. 

Attorney Guo Feixiong, who also defended religious freedom cases, remained imprisoned in Guangzhou at the end of the reporting period. In 2007 he was sentenced to five years' imprisonment for the crime of "illegal business activities." Guo's family members reported that prison police tortured him. In November 2009 Guo's wife reported that police harassed her after she wrote open letters to domestic and foreign government officials calling for the release of her husband. 

Several Beijing-based lawyers who had handled religious freedom and Falun Gong cases, including Li Subin and Jiang Tianyong, were denied renewal of their professional licenses. In May 2010 the Beijing Bureau of Justice disbarred lawyers Tang Jitian and Liu Wei who also represented Falun Gong members. Two of the sons of Uighur Muslim rights defender Rebiya Kadeer remained in prison. Certain religious freedom defenders were kept under surveillance, placed under house arrest, prevented from attending trials and meeting clients, and were not allowed to travel abroad. 

It was difficult to confirm some aspects of reported abuses of Falun Gong adherents because they were often prevented from meeting with foreign reporters and officials. There were credible reports from NGOs and international media that detentions of Falun Gong practitioners increased around sensitive dates. In certain areas neighborhood groups were reportedly instructed to report on Falun Gong members; monetary rewards have been offered to citizens who informed on Falun Gong practitioners. 

Falun Gong sources estimated that since 1999 at least 6,000 Falun Gong practitioners have been sentenced to prison. Falun Gong adherents have also been subjected to administrative sentences of up to three years in RTL camps. Falun Gong estimated more than 100,000 adherents in the country have been sentenced to RTL. 

Family members reported the harsh treatment of Falun Gong practitioners, including the use of torture. Falun Gong practitioners were also subjected to detention in psychiatric hospitals on the orders of public security officials. There was no mechanism for appealing such psychiatric commitments. Falun Gong practitioners detained in psychiatric hospitals were reportedly administered medicine against their will and subjected to electric shock treatment. 

In June 2010 the husband of imprisoned Falun Gong practitioner, Cao Junping, was told he would be tried on charges of harboring a criminal for assisting his wife. Authorities also reportedly forced him to perform hard labor for a month, fired him from his position as a policeman, and pressured him to divorce his wife. 

In February 2010 Jiang Feng, the husband of a musician in Shen Yun, a Falun Gong-related performing arts show, was reported missing in the country. His family members have received no information on any arrest, charges, or sentence. 

In January 2010 authorities detained Guo Xiaojun, a former lecturer at a Shanghai university and confiscated Falun Gong materials from his home. Although detained, Guo had not been charged with any crime during the reporting period. According to Falun Gong-affiliated Web sites, he was being held in the Baoshan Detention Center. 

In 2009 Zhang Xingwu of Jinan, Shandong Province was sentenced to seven years' imprisonment for "using a cult to undermine the law." According to reports from his family and international media, security officials prevented Zhang's attorney from participating in his trial. Police also placed Zhang's relatives under house arrest during the trial. Zhang's daughter reported that her father was not permitted to leave his cell and was under tight surveillance. 

In March 2010 Li Yaohua and her daughter Zhang Yibo of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region were sentenced to three and a half and one and a half years in prison respectively for practicing Falun Gong. They were reportedly physically abused by police in detention. 

The Falun Gong also reported several incidents of the government's interference with their activities abroad. According to NGO reports, the Shen Yun Performing Arts Company, and several media outlets, government officials pressured venues and governments in Asia and Europe to limit the broadcast time of Falun Gong-associated radio stations and cancel or otherwise delay Shen Yun performances.  The performances artistically present Chinese culture through music and dance and reference the Government's treatment of Falun Gong. 

Prior to the 60th anniversary of the PRC's founding on October 1, 2009, house churches in Beijing, Shanghai, and Shanxi reported that authorities pressured them to stop meeting. In November 2009 Public Security Bureau and SARA officials ordered the 1,200-member Wanbang Church in Shanghai to stop holding services, declaring that the church was engaging in "illegal religious activities." Authorities interrogated Pastor Cui Quan and other congregants and pressured them to join a local TSPM/CCC congregation. In fall 2009, the Shouwang house church, a large urban congregation in Beijing, lost its lease to office space it had previously used for services due to political pressure on its landlord. As a result, the congregation held two outdoor services in a public park in northern Beijing, while attempting to purchase a permanent meeting venue. In November, local authorities allowed the group to meet in a cinema. At the end of the reporting period, the congregation was unable to obtain access to new property that it purchased. At various times, the church's Web site was blocked. 

In fall 2009 the Jin Dongtai (Golden Light) branch of the 50,000 member Linfen house church network in Shanxi Province was involved in a dispute with local authorities over religious activities and property. Police raided the church in September 2009. On September 27, the Linfen Bureau of Religious Affairs issued a statement accusing Pastor Yang Rongli of "illegally holding religious activities" and "illegally sharing the Gospel" with youth. On November 25, five church leaders were convicted of "illegally occupying farm land" and "disturbing transportation through a mass gathering." Pastor Yang and Zhang Huamei were sentenced to seven and four years' imprisonment respectively. Pastor Wang Xiaoguang and two other congregants were sentenced to between three and four years in prison. Five other congregants were sentenced to two years of RTL. 

On May 2, 2010, Guangzhou public security officers forced the landlord of the Liangren Church in Guangzhou, Guangdong Province, to terminate the group's lease, effectively compelling the church to hold service outdoors. Authorities also detained Liangren Pastor Wang Dao and his wife on several occasions, raided their home, and threatened the couple. On May 9, 2010, while leading a service at Guangzhou People's Park, public security officials arrested Wang and charged him with "disrupting social order." Pastor Wang was released from custody on June 13, 2010. At the end of the reporting period, he was still awaiting trial on charges of "hindering the administration of credit cards." 

While many Christian groups were able to provide aid to survivors of the May 2008 earthquake in Sichuan Province, some unregistered Christian groups also reported that government officials interfered with their relief efforts. 

In December 2009 Uighur Christian house church leader Alimjan Imit was convicted of "illegally providing state secrets or intelligence to foreign entities" by the Kashgar Prefecture Intermediate People's Court and sentenced to 15 years' imprisonment. The People's High Court of the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region denied his appeal on March 16, 2010. In September 2008 the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found his detention arbitrary and in violation of international standards of due process. 

On November 18, 2009, authorities released Uighur Christian Wusiman Yiming, arrested in 2007 and sentenced to two years of RTL for "assisting foreigners with illegal religious activities." He was involved with the local house church. 

At the end of the reporting period, Pastor Zhang Rongliang, head of the Fangcheng Church and the China for Christ house church network, continued to serve a prison sentence of seven and a half years. In 2006 authorities convicted Zhang of "obtaining a fraudulent passport and illegally crossing the border." Zhang frequently traveled overseas to speak at Christian gatherings. He is approximately 60 years old and reportedly suffers from severe diabetes. 

Shi Weihan continued to serve a three year sentence for printing and distributing Bibles and Christian books without government permission. In June 2009 Beijing authorities sentenced him to imprisonment on charges of illegal business activities. 

Some unofficial Catholic clergy remained in detention, in particular in Hebei Province. Harassment of unregistered bishops and priests continued, including government surveillance and repeated short detentions. 

There was no new information about unregistered Bishop Su Zhimin, who remained unaccounted for since his reported detention in 1997. 

Auxiliary Bishop of Xiwanzi diocese, Hebei Province, Yao Liang, remained in detention during the reporting period. Father Li Huisheng, whom police reportedly tortured in August 2006, remained in custody serving a seven-year term for "inciting the masses against the government." 

At the end of the reporting period, 75-year old Bishop Julius Jia Zhiguo of Zhengding, Hebei, continued to be imprisoned. Authorities arrested him in March 2009 on the first day of a Vatican-sponsored meeting on the Catholic Church in the country. Bishop Jia reportedly resisted pressure to join the CPA but worked towards reconciliation between the Vatican and the CPA. 

During the reporting period, XUAR authorities detained Uighur Muslims for their religious beliefs and activities. 

In July 2009 according to an international media report, authorities in Yining (Ghulja) County, Ili Kazakh Autonomous Prefecture, detained Zulpiye and three of her relatives in connection to their religious activities, which included religious instruction to neighborhood women, reading religious books, and wearing religious dress. Authorities reportedly accused them of undermining state-appointed religious leaders. 

In July 2009 at another village in the same township, authorities detained Setiwaldi Hashim, his wife Helime, and three other family members. Relatives reported Hashim was accused of unauthorized religious instruction and held in custody for 40 days. 

In June 2009 authorities detained 32 women in a Qur'an study group in Bachu (Maralbéshi) County, Kashgar District, according to international media reports, on charges of engaging in "illegal religious activities." 

In March 2009 authorities in Hotan City closed at least seven Islamic schools and conducted house-to-house searches. At least 39 persons were arrested, and officials claimed to have seized books, propaganda material, and weapons. 

There have been credible reports that the government pressured other governments to forcibly return Uighur Muslims from other countries, including Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, and Syria; some had protested against limits on religious freedom and others who engaged in religious activities deemed illegal by the government. 

For information on North Korean refugees, please see the U.S. State Department's 2009 Country Report on Human Rights Practices in China and the 2010 International Religious Freedom Report on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. 

Forced Religious Conversion 

Falun Gong organizations reported that detained practitioners were subjected to various methods of physical and psychological coercion in attempts to force them to deny their belief in Falun Gong. 

Improvements and Positive Developments in Respect for Religious Freedom 

During the reporting period, official Chinese media sources published a number of articles discussing religious topics, including specific house churches, such as the Shouwang Church in Beijing. In November 2009 the Global Times English edition published a special investigation into house churches, and in December 2009 the China Daily published an article on the rule of law and "freedom of faith." 

Academic discussions on the subject of house churches took place at certain universities. During these discussions some scholars recommended that religious registration regulations be revised to permit more churches to register. 

Some foreign faith-based aid groups were allowed to provide social services in the country. Hong Kong-based NGO Christian Action operated a home for children and rehabilitation center to care for orphans in Qinghai Province. Taiwan-based Buddhist NGO, Tzu Chi, continued earthquake relief efforts in Sichuan Province, including rebuilding 13 schools. 

Foreigners were invited to preach at services in registered religious venues. In March 2010, Luis Palau and Reverend James Meeks preached to more than 14,000 persons at the Hangzhou Chong-yi Christian Church. In October 2009 Reverend Franklin Graham preached to a reported crowd of 10,000 at Baoding Christian Church in Hebei Province. 

In May 2010, on the eve of the Shanghai World Expo, Shanghai authorities permitted the Ohel Rachel Synagogue to reopen and receive visitors for the duration of the Expo which was scheduled to end on October 31, 2010. The Synagogue was part of the Shanghai Education Commission compound. 

In April 2010 a Catholic diocese in Inner Mongolia ordained a new bishop, filling a position that had been vacant for five years. Bishop Paul Meng Qinglu became the seventh bishop of Hohhot, the capital of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. Bishop Meng was the first bishop ordained in the country since December 2007. He received both a papal mandate and the approval of the Bishops' Conference of the Catholic Church in China for his ordination. 

In June 2010 Monsignor Joseph Han Yingjin was ordained as the new bishop of Sanyuan (Shaanxi). His ordination was approved by the Holy See and took place in the church of the Sacred Heart in Yuanmenxiang. 

A Catholic expatriate group in Beijing reported that Chinese citizens were permitted to attend their religious gathering during the reporting period. 

Section III. Status of Societal Respect for Religious Freedom 

Religion and ethnicity are often linked in the country. It is therefore difficult to categorize many incidents solely as examples of ethnic or religious intolerance. Religious and ethnic minority groups, such as Tibetan Buddhists and Uighur Muslims, experienced discrimination because of both their religious beliefs and their status as ethnic minorities with distinct languages and cultures. In the XUAR, tension between Han Chinese and Uighur Muslims continued during the reporting period. Tensions also continued among ethnic and religious groups in Tibetan areas, including Han, Hui, Tibetan Buddhists, and Tibetan Muslims. 

Section IV. U.S. Government Policy 

The Department of State, the U.S. embassy in Beijing, and the U.S. consulates general in Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang, and Wuhan regularly urged government officials at the central and local levels to implement stronger protections of religious freedom. The U.S. ambassador met with members of religious groups and religious freedom defenders, and highlighted religious freedom in public speeches and private diplomacy with senior officials. The Department of State, the embassy, and the consulates general regularly called upon the government to release prisoners of conscience. 

U.S. officials in both the country and the United States met regularly with academics, NGOs, members of both registered and unregistered religious groups, and family members of religious prisoners. The Department of State nominated a number of Chinese religious leaders and scholars to participate in the International Visitor Leadership Programs related to the role of religion in American society. The Department of State also introduced government officials to officials from U.S. government agencies who engaged with American religious communities and to members of those communities. 

Since 1999, the Secretary of State has designated the country as a "Country of Particular Concern" under the International Religious Freedom Act for particularly severe violations of religious freedom. The most recent redesignation as a CPC was on January 16, 2009. Economic measures in effect against the country under the IRFA related to restriction of exports of crime control and detection instruments and equipment (Foreign Relations Authorization Act, Fiscal Years 1990 and 1991, P.L. 101-246).