China/Germany: German ambassador requests release of Catholic bishop

China | 25 June 2017

According to Asia News reporting on 21 June 2017, Germany's ambassador to China, Michael Clauss, has requested the Chinese government to release the Roman Catholic bishop of Wenzhou, and expressed serious concern about "new restrictions on the right to religious freedom and belief." Since the death of his predecessor in September 2016, the new bishop has been frequently detained by state authorities in an attempt to force him to join the Patriotic Association which is not under the jurisdiction of the Vatican. Thomas Muller, persecution analyst at World Watch Research, comments: "This public request is quite unexpected and as a matter of fact, it has been the first of its kind for more than 10 years by a Western government, which tells a story of its own. Similarly encouraging is that the German ambassador also voiced concerns over the draft regulations on religion. These had already been published in September 2016, so the criticism is not exactly immediate, but better late than never. But the mystery remains: What triggered Germany to voice its concerns so publically right now?"