Chinese Public Security agents have recently arrested a number of missionaries in the border region near North Korea, drawing attention to the nature of their activities and the severity of the crackdown. A total of 32 South Korean missionaries were confirmed to have been deported from China’s Yanji City in January, while a further 4 South Korean ministers and 2 missionaries were arrested in Yanji and Tsingtao in February.
An official from South Korea’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed that on February 18th and 19th, two missionaries were arrested in Liaoning Province and are currently in custody.
He added that the South Korean regional consul-general is providing support to the South Korean nationals and consulting with legal professionals. The embassy stated that, “it has sent a request to Chinese Public Security to dispose the arrests on humanitarian grounds, and will continue to provide consular assistance.”
Analysts believe that the rising number of deportations of missionaries is indicative of a strengthening of China’s religion laws. The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) is currently focused on maintaining the stability of the political system, while evangelism is seen as a potential obstacle to national consensus and unity that the party is trying to build.
“Since Xi Jinping rose to power, he has focused on regime stability and this has resulted in strong implementation of the religion laws,” a local Chinese source explained to Daily NK on March 16. “In particular, Christianity is seen as a reflection of Western values, and so it has been on the receiving end of the tighter controls. Missionaries who evangelize for freedom and human rights have become a target of Chinese Public Security agents.
“Foreign missionaries in China are often drawn to the China-North Korea border region. Public Security Agents in places like Yanji City have been carefully tracking these missionaries. Those engaged in evangelism and who lend assistance to defectors are being followed by Chinese Public Security Agents, and have had to curtail their activities,” the source continued.
However, China’s official stance on religion is complex. There is some evidence that China is trying to establish diplomatic ties with the Vatican, with Xi Jinping sending Pope Francis a gift last October. Whether such relations continue to develop or not, many believe that the Chinese Communist Party will continue to block the influence of Christianity, and possible attempts to consolidate internal religious movements.
“Even if China becomes more open to religions, the CCP will likely attempt to suppress the activities of foreign missionaries. It would be hard to say that domestic Christian evangelists have received a lot of support from foreign missionaries. Nonetheless, the oppression of foreign missionaries gives insight into the true nature of the CCP’s religious openness policy,” the inside source in China added.
A separate source affiliated with missionary groups active in China believes that this clampdown is likely unrelated to ongoing Chinese retaliation for South Korea’s decision to install the US THAAD missile defense system.
“Locals have noticed the intensifying crackdown by the Chinese authorities on religion for a while,” he said. “I don’t think the recent measures are a retaliation for THAAD. The attitude of the authorities towards religion was just dormant, but now it has come to the forefront following a spate of arrests and deportations.”
He added that the deportations also seem to be aligned with efforts to block North Korean defectors because the crackdown on missionaries has focused on the border region.
“There have been occasions where missionaries provided food and shelter to defectors, but it is unusual for these missionaries to act as escape ‘brokers’ or to engage in information dissemination,” the source said. “The majority of the missionaries that were recently arrested actually had nothing much to do with defectors.”
Xi Jinping’s consolidation of power
The recent arrests and deportations of foreign missionaries suggests that Xi Jinping’s religious openness policy is strictly superficial. Others are pointing out that China’s ascendency to G2 status could be threatened by Xi’s consolidation of power as an autocrat.
As China transformed into a communist autocracy, it adopted ‘The Fundamental Point of View and Policy Concerning Religion in Our Country in [China]’s Socialist Period.’ In 1982, however, this began to change into a policy of ‘religious openness.’
According to the newer policy, laid out in Document Number 19, China recognizes the people’s freedom to practice religion and hold religious beliefs. However, as China continues to grow as a socialist power, the influence of religion will most likely be held in check. Religious activities are currently classified as either illegal (and counterrevolutionary), or ‘normal.’
China’s general movement towards openness and reform once included a policy of religious freedom, but this ideal is beginning to crumble. From the 1990s, foreign investment into China began to increase, and with it a large number of foreign missionaries flooded into the country to evangelize.
The CCP responded by calling these foreign missionary activities “counter-revolutionary,” as a means to control them.
One missionary with 10 years of experience in China stated, “Although the CCP gave Chinese religious followers permission to pursue religious activities, overseas missionaries were not greeted warmly. The CCP is an advocate of atheism, so even though it gives people the right to practice religion, how much freedom does it really want? Many of the Chinese followers were glad to see foreign missionaries come in. As China continues to head towards openness and reform, the influence of outside religions increases, and the authorities feel compelled to counteract it.”
“China is attempting to become a G2 power that promotes globalization, but these kinds of crackdowns are counterproductive. The value of ‘freedom of religion’ is spreading across the world, so it is regrettable that those who practice in China are being harassed by the police,” the missionary concluded.
