According to Voice of the Martyrs Korea representative Hyun Sook Foley, people will receive the cash reward if they report on “suspicious illegal religious sites and activities” including churches that meet without registering with the government. Representative Foley explains that such churches are considered illegal inside of China, but many choose not to register in order to avoid the censorship imposed by the Chinese Communist Party on registered churches.

According to Voice of the Martyrs Korea representative Hyun Sook Foley, people will receive the cash reward if they report on “suspicious illegal religious sites and activities” including churches that meet without registering with the government. Representative Foley explains that such churches are considered illegal inside of China, but many choose not to register in order to avoid the censorship imposed by the Chinese Communist Party on registered churches.

Representative Foley says the announcement is only the latest in a series of efforts across China where authorities incentivize neighbors to report unregistered Christian activity. Foley says that Voice of the Martyrs Korea and its China partner China Aid have been able to confirm that similar rewards are being given out in other areas of China for reports on illegal religious activities. Foley notes that a government office in China’s southwestern Henan province released an announcement on January 28 of this year asking residents to report “illegal religious activities” via a hotline. The announcement guaranteed confidentiality for residents who called the number and also offered cash rewards for factual tips.

The announcement, shown here, was posted by the Wenfeng Street Community Office in Tanghe County. It details that people who display tiles or post Lunar New Year couplets with religious messages “will be stopped immediately and seriously educated.” Likewise, people who provide sites for “illegal religious gathering activities without approval will be fined 20,000-200,000 yuan.” The notice claims that such actions are illegal under Articles 69 and 71 of China’s Regulations on Religious Affairs and says that those found in drastic violation of the regulations will receive a “severe penalty.”

Foley says one way Korean Christians can stand with Chinese house churches is to add their names to a declaration of religious freedom originally published in September 2018 with signatures from 439 Chinese pastors. The full declaration is available at www.chinadeclaration.org. “Unless Christians in Korea and around the world let Chinese authorities know that we are standing with the churches in Guizhou province and Henan province, we can expect the crackdown on Chinese house churches to widen and worsen.” Foley urges Korean Christians to sign the online petition, which Voice of the Martyrs Korea will be presenting to the Chinese Embassy once all signatures have been collected.