Dungang (AsiaNews) - Less than two weeks before Christmas, 29 house church leaders were arrested in Henan on December 12, 2005, as reported by the China Aid Association .
According to eyewitness reports, at 3pm on December 12 (local time), 40 police officers with 8 police vehicles raided a house church leadership meeting at Xiapigang Village, Dungang Town, Xincai County, Henan Province.
Around 100 major church leaders from Henan and Anhui Provinces were gathered at a believer's house, discussing how the house churches can effectively help a large group of peasants who had contracted Aids. Henan is internationally known as "the Aids Disaster Area" because many peasants became infected when they were forced to sold their blood to local blood centers that were contaminated with the Aids virus.
Their private property was confiscated without receipts including three motor bicycles, one cell phone, and all of their luggage as well as winter blankets. According to one pastor who was at the raided meeting, the police officers showed a search warrant and stated the meeting was an "illegal religious gathering."
Pastor Shen Yiping, the founder of internationally known House Church group called China Gospel Fellowship was among those arrested.
