A Chinese house church pastor who was tortured into confessing to “divulging state secrets” has been released after two and a half years in jail.
While in detention, Yang Hua contracted vasculitis and diabetes and, at one point, was so unwell he was unable to walk.
The house church pastor and father of two was arrested in 2015 when he attempted to prevent authorities from raiding the church he pastored in Guizhou province, south west China. He was initially falsely charged with “obstructing justice”, but was later falsely accused of “divulging state secrets” and forced under torture to agree to an untrue confession. His interrogators also threatened that his wife and children would “face problems”. They also said they would make Yang “disappear” and feed his body to pigs.
As he was released on 19 June 2018, Yang Hua began singing worship songs. His wife, Wang, said, “Even though my husband experienced misfortune, his belief remains resolute.”
Most Chinese Christians are part of “house churches”, which are unregistered congregations whose members are at greater risk of arrest, torture and imprisonment by authorities.
