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"The methods are diversifying away from cult legislation and toward economic and criminal prosecutions as a way of attacking such groups," Xiao Qing, Executive Director of New York-based Human Rights in China, told the Associated Press.

World magazine, sourcing Voice of the Martyrs, says female church members were beaten by Chinese authorities to force them to claim Gong raped them.

Pakistan's Islamic parties gain in election
Pakistani Christians had reasons to celebrate and mourn yesterday's elections. The good news was that it was the first election where they could vote for whoever they wanted to, regardless of the candidate's religion. Earlier, under what many called a "religious apartheid" system, Christians could only vote for Christian candidates — which kept them from being politically influential.

However, the main story coming out of yesterday's elections was not the triumph of Christians, but that of hardline Muslim parties. The New York Times says the vote "could complicate the American-led campaign against terrorism." But so far, Weblog hasn't seen any commentary on what the vote might mean for the war against terrorism in Pakistan itself, as militant Muslims have attacked Christians throughout the country. Keep an eye on Pakistan Christian Post for news related to the election.

Persecution and violence:

• Church targeted in second blast in Southern Philippine city | No injuries reported. (Bloomberg)
  
  
• Attackers of Christians not identified | Two workers from Grace Baptist Church in the Panther Nagar slum of Vikroli were returning home from the church at 9.15 p.m. when they were waylaid and beaten up with bamboos and iron rods (The Times of India)
  
  
• FBI capture 5 over Christian attacks | The men—three Afghans and two Pakistanis—were captured in a pre-dawn raid on the Shamshatoo refugee camp (Associated Press)

State Department and religious freedom:

• A state of denial | If Saudi Arabia has no freedom of religion, and if punishment for those outside the Wahhabi fold includes arrest and credible reports of torture, why has the State Department not designated Saudi Arabia one of its "countries of particular concern"? (Editorial, The Wall Street Journal)
  
  
• Saudi Arabia faces blacklist | State department considers naming it a "country of particular concern" (UPI)
  
  
• State Department blasted for lauding PA's 'religious tolerance' | Israel and the PA lumped together in a section titled "Israel and the occupied territories" were both lauded for generally respecting freedom of worship. But criticism of Israel took up most of the 15-page section (The Jerusalem Post)

War with Iraq:

• The war theology | Churches differ over the invasion of Iraq (The Wall Street Journal)
  
  
• Conservative Christians biggest backers of Iraq war | Some 69 percent of conservative Christians favor military action against Baghdad; 10 percentage points more than the U.S. adult population as a whole (Inter Press Service)
  
  
• Anti-war lobbying effort heats up in Washington | Religious leaders began another phase of an anti-war lobbying effort on Capitol Hill Wednesday (Associated Press)
  
  
• War on Iraq must have UN support, say the bishops | "Preventive" war — action to stop President Saddam Hussein using weapons of mass destruction — would cause immense and widespread suffering, they say (The Times, London)
  
  
• Church leaders oppose war | Speeches, signs, letters make case against unilateral strike on Iraq (The News & Observer, Raleigh, N.C.)
  
  
• Don't wait too late, Christians, to speak of peace | Often, I have been asked, where is the prophetic outcry of the Christian churches on behalf of the vulnerable? (Sam Dunning, Houston Chronicle)

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October (Web-only) 2002, Vol. 46