China: Government Grants Church Right to Land after Pastor's Wife is Bulldozed by Government Workers

A Chinese church has won a land dispute with the government, but only after the pastor’s wife was killed by a bulldozer while authorities tried to demolish the church.

ChristianHeadlines.com previously reported that Ding Cuimei and her husband, pastor Li Jiangong, were pushed into a pit by a bulldozer and covered with soil as they were protesting the government-enforced demolition of their church building.

Li was able to escape, but Ding suffocated to death.

Bob Fu, president of human rights organization China Aid condemned the tragedy, calling it a “serious violation of the right to life, religious freedom and rule of law.”

Now, however, amidst public outcry over Ding’s death, the government has ruled that the church does have the right to the land on which their church is built, according to ChristianToday.com.

Bob Fu said the ruling is a step in the right direction, but there are still concerns about the government’s abuse of human rights.

"While we are glad to see and commend the local authorities under international pressure acted swiftly and fairly to resolve the church's land with this right decision, we are still deeply concerned about the justice for this family of martyr which is still not done.”

"We appeal to the Chinese authorities to hold those criminal perpetrators accountable with a fair investigation and standard judicial process for full justice and with unhindered legal representation,” he continued.

China has intensified its crackdown on Christians and churches in recent months. Up to 1,700 churches have been demolished or had their crosses removed in just a single Chinese province.  

Publication date: April 28, 2016