China: Director of labour camp apologises for wrongfully jailing Christians
Feb 05 2008
Postings >> China

The director of a labour camp has apologised for wrongfully jailing a group of Christians freed in a humiliating U-turn for the Chinese authorities.

Three female house church leaders and their four male colleagues were released unconditionally from a camp in Hubei after a 'stunning legal victory', reports China Aid.

After apologising to the Christians, the head of the labour camp said that he and fellow officials 'had learned their lesson and would seek to do a better job in the future'.

A total of nine Christian leaders were sentenced to between 12 and 18 months' 're-education through labour' last August. Two of the nine served their terms at home, for medical reasons.

The nine were arrested in July, at a Sunday service in a private home, on suspicion of 'making use of [an] evil cult organisation to undermine the enforcement of state laws'.

China Aid helped push for a legal review of the case, which was heard by Hubei Provincial Re-education through Labour Administration Committee last month. Overturning the original conviction, the committee decreed that it was not 'based on clear facts' or 'supported by sufficient evidence'.

Fresh reports confirm that the four male leaders were freed on January 11, the women 12 days later. As 7x7 reported on16 October 2007, the nine included the parents of young children.

Meanwhile, in Kashi, Xinjiang province, the authorities have just arrested house church leader A Li Mu Jiang and his wife over an alleged 'national security issue'.

Praise God for the release of the nine Christian house church leaders in Hubei. Thank God that the labour camp director apologised publicly for their detention. Ask God to move in the life of this man and his colleagues.

Pray for the immediate release of A Li Mu Jiang and his wife.