China: Christian Pastor Sentenced To One Year In Prison After Protesting Forced Cross Removals

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Churchgoers and religious rights advocates say the Christian faith is being targeted because its rapid growth unnerves the ruling Communist Party.

Ahmadiyya Times | News Watch | Int'l Desk
Source/Credit: The Huffington Post
By AP / Didi Tang | March 29, 2015

BEIJING — A Christian pastor who questioned authorities in eastern China about the forced removal of crosses from the roofs of churches was sentenced Tuesday to one year in prison, his lawyer said.

Huang Yizi is the first person to be jailed for opposing Zhejiang province's intense campaign to remove crosses from churches.

Authorities in the province tore down about 400 rooftop crosses last year, saying they violated the building code. Churchgoers and religious rights advocates say the Christian faith is being targeted because its rapid growth unnerves the ruling Communist Party.

After a six-hour trial, a court in the city of Pingyang found Huang guilty of gathering crowds to disrupt social order, lawyer Zhang Kai said by telephone.

A woman who answered the court's phone and gave only her family name, Li, confirmed that Huang's trial took place Tuesday afternoon. The phone rang unanswered in the evening, when the trial ended.

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