Ruth Wang, Chinese lawyer for underground church, flees to Taiwan – rights group
Taiwan said Friday it has provided “temporary accommodation” to a Chinese citizen, after a rights group reported that a lawyer representing detained leaders of an underground church in Beijing had fled to the island. Taiwan’s top China policy body did not identify the person, but ChinaAid said Ruth Wang, a partner at Vdoor Law Firm […]
Taiwan granted temporary refuge on Friday to Ruth Wang, a Chinese lawyer who sought sanctuary in the island nation after representing detained leaders of an underground church in Beijing. The rights group ChinaAid reported that Wang, a partner at Vdoor Law Firm in Beijing, had arrived in Taiwan on Wednesday "seeking protection from Taiwanese authorities."
Wang and her family left China due to growing apprehension over escalating government pressure linked to her legal duties and representation of detained Zion Church leaders in Beijing. The underground church, known as Zion Church, is an unregistered religious group that some Chinese Christians prefer to worship in rather than state-sanctioned temples under government control.
On Thursday, ChinaAid disclosed that Wang and her family departed China because of concerns regarding mounting government surveillance and pressure associated with her legal advocacy for detained Zion Church leaders in Beijing. Taiwan's Mainland Affairs Council issued a brief statement on Friday in response to media reports about a "Chinese lawyer seeking assistance in Taiwan."
The council stated that the government had provided a "Chinese national transferring through a Taiwanese airport" with "temporary accommodation on humanitarian grounds and is following up on the matter." Members of the Zion Church, including founder Ezra Jin, were apprehended in October on "suspected unlawful utilization of information networks."
Jin, also known by his Chinese name Mingri, was released by China in July following US President Donald Trump's intervention with Chinese President Xi Jinping. As of now, eight of the Zion Church members detained in October remain incarcerated, according to ChinaAid. China's ruling Communist Party has, historically, held a skeptical view of organized religion and, under Xi, has intensified surveillance of unofficial groups. Authorities have been intensifying crackdowns on unregistered churches in recent months.
Written by urgent.news from Hong Kong Free Press's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
