China: Date of implementation for regulations on religion announced

After more than a year, the Chinese government finally announced on 7 September 2017 that the implementation of regulations on religion will begin on 1 February 2018. Catholic News agency La Croix International reported on 7 September 2017, that there are mixed expectations among Chinese Christians. Thomas Muller, persecution analyst at World Watch Research, explains: "The announcement has been long-awaited but it is still unclear which level of authorities are to be responsible for the implementation of the rules and how stringently they will be applied. Also, if the directive to only accept registered religious communities is followed strictly, what will this mean for the tens of thousands of unregistered churches? As a report by UCA News from 29 August 2017 shows, restrictions have already been tightened in some provinces (Henan, Hunan, Zhejiang and Inner Mongolia) where the holding of traditional summer youth-camps by Christian churches was prohibited."