1. Overview
In 2024, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) continued advancing its campaign for the “Sinicization” of religion. On January 1, it enacted the Patriotic Education Law of the People’s Republic of China1, further tightening its control and suppression of religious practices. Many churches were forced to display pro-CCP slogans, replace Sunday worship with performances of “Red Songs2”, and substitute sermons on the Bible with lectures on the history of the CCP’s rise to power. House churches that refused to join the state-controlled Three-Self Church were persistently labeled as “cults” and shut down. Church leaders faced severe accusations and heavy sentences under fabricated charges such as “fraud3,” “illegal business operations4,” and “inciting subversion of state power5.” Imams who taught the Quran were also publicly arrested and taken into custody6. The persecution and crackdown on The Church of Almighty God (CAG) became even more severe in 2024. Internal CCP documents revealed that Xi Jinping attached “great importance” to these operations and “issued multiple important directives” to suppress the church. In August 2023, the CCP Central Political and Legal Affairs Commission issued a secret directive to launch a three-year “Tough Battle7” targeting The Church of Almighty God starting in 2024. The directive mandated coordination by party committees and political and legal affairs commissions at all levels, with close cooperation from various political and legal units, the United Front departments, and the local governments. The objectives were to “dismantle domestic organizational structures,” “drastically reduce the current membership,” and “effectively curb overseas expansion.” The directive emphasized a “comprehensive suppression targeting key CAG members.” Following the directives, comprehensive investigations targeting CAG members began in January 2024 nationwide, with large-scale arrests continuing from June onward. According to incomplete statistics, at least 19,053 individuals were arrested throughout the year, marking the highest number in recent years. Of those arrested, 2,175 were sentenced, with 1,051 receiving sentences of three years or more, 168 individuals sentenced to seven years or more, with the longest term being 14 years. At least 24 church members died as a result of persecution.
The Church of Almighty God, established in 1991, is the fastest-growing house church in China and has been a primary target for eradication by the CCP authoritarian regime. In 2000, the CCP leadership issued secret orders to “do more and say less, and silently crush it without drawing attention.” In 2014, the CCP openly declared that “there will be no retreat until it is completely eradicated.” The CCP also claimed that “beating to death counts as nothing but suicide” and “better to wrongfully kill a thousand than let a single one escape.” It can be said that they will stop at nothing. After the outbreak of COVID-19, the CCP intensified its crackdown instead of easing it. In 2024, the number of arrests was more than triple that of 2019 before the pandemic, and the number of sentences of seven years or more doubled compared to 2019. From 2011 to 2024, nearly 480,000 CAG members were detained by CCP authorities. Records indicate that at least 293 individuals have died as a result of persecution since the church was established.
In 2024, the U.S. State Department and the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released reports8 that repeatedly highlighted the CCP’s ongoing persecution of The Church of Almighty God. The reports documented cases of detained church members and referenced cases of the CCP’s transnational repression9 targeting CAG members in Spain.
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