The Overcomers: China

Journalist and Christian activist Li Ying was released from prison in China on December 25, 2011, almost five years before the end of her 15-year sentence. To learn more, watch this one minute video clip.


For other videos like this one, visit our multimedia site. For more on China’s persecuted Church, click here.

Pastor released from prison in Turkmenistan

Praise God for Pastor Ilmurad’s release!

Back in August, we invited you to write letters of encouragement to Pastor Ilmurad Nurliev of Turkmenistan. We are pleased to share that after nearly 18 months in prison, he has been released!

Pastor Ilmurad, 46, was arrested at his home in Mary in south-eastern Turkmenistan on August 27, 2010. He was charged with extracting money from three people – an accusation his wife, Maya, and fellow church members strongly denied.

Forum 18 News Service reports that Pastor Ilmurad was among a group of about 230 prisoners freed under amnesty from a labour camp on February 18.

"Church members have been coming to the house to celebrate my release with me," Pastor Ilmurad said. "I want to thank ... everyone who supported me and helped my release."

While in prison, he was shown – but not permitted to read – some of the letters sent to him by Christians around the world. "I was able to see letters and cards from Canada, Britain and elsewhere that had come in for me. But although I could have a quick look at some of them, they wouldn't give them to me." However, even the knowledge that people wrote letters encouraged him. "They showed me I was not forgotten,” he added.

Praise God for Pastor Ilmurad's release! Pray that God will heal any physical, emotional, or spiritual wounds. Pray that God will continue to equip and use Pastor Ilmurad to further His Kingdom in Turkmenistan.

While Pastor Ilmurad has been released, there are other Christians who remain imprisoned for their faith. Remind them that they are not forgotten! To compose a letter in a prisoner’s own language, visit PrisonerAlert.com. For our letter writing guide and complete prisoners’ list, click here. Your letters do make a difference!

Li Ying released early from prison in China

Praise God for Li's early release!

(Sources: China Aid Association, VOM-USA)

Journalist and Christian activist Li Ying was released from prison in China on December 25, 2011, almost five years before the end of her 15-year sentence. During her time in prison, she was reportedly forced to work 15 hours a day on products for export. Her visits with her family were also strictly limited, and she was not allowed to have a Bible.

Li was arrested in April 2001 for her work on an underground Christian magazine. In December 2001, Li was one of 17 South China Church leaders who were convicted of "using a cult to undermine enforcement of the law," five of whom were sentenced to death. Li was one of them, but as a result of the ensuing international outcry a higher court revoked the death sentences in September 2002, citing lack of clarity about certain facts and insufficient evidence. The case was retried in October 2002. Instead of the crime of "using a cult," the five who had been condemned to death were convicted instead of "intentional assault."

China Aid Association founder and president, Bob Fu, spoke with Li on February 10. Li is very grateful for the support she received from around the world. She told Fu that she was aware of the many letters she had received but that authorities never let her see the letters.

Thank the Lord for this wonderful answer to prayer! Ask Him to restore Li physically and emotionally. Pray that she will draw ever closer to Him as she comes to terms with her new life outside prison walls. Pray for the many Christian believers currently in prison for their faith.

To learn more about the persecuted Church in China, please click here. To find out how you can encourage other imprisoned believers in China, visit VOM's letter writing site. For our letter writing guide and complete prisoners' list, click here.

House church leader released from prison in China

Praise God that Shi Enhao was released early!
Photo: ChinaAid Association

Shi Enhao, a house church pastor and vice president of the Chinese House Church Alliance, was unexpectedly released from a labour camp on January 20, reports ChinaAid Association. At last report, the legal basis for his early release was not yet known.

Pastor Shi was sentenced to two years of "re-education through labour" in July 2011 for "illegal meetings and illegal organizing of venues for religious meetings" (for more, click here). Following his arrest, police ordered Pastor Shi's house church, which has several thousand members and meets in various locations, to stop gathering. They also confiscated instruments, choir robes, a car, and 140,000 Yuan (approximately $20,900 CAD) in donations from the church.

Praise God for Pastor Shi's release from prison!

• Pray that the Lord will meet every need of this pastor and his family.
• Pray that believers in Pastor Shi's church will be encouraged to continue to meet together despite opposition (Hebrews 10:23-25).
• Pray that the gospel will continue to advance in China.

Please visit the China Country Report to learn more about China's suffering Christians.

Pastor released from prison in Vietnam

Pastor Y Wo Nie was
released in December 2011!

Y Wo Nie, a Vietnamese pastor who was arrested in August 2004, has been released from prison, reports our sister mission, VOM-USA.

Y Wo Nie was given a nine-year prison sentence for leading a demonstration demanding more religious freedom and the release of property confiscated by the Vietnamese government (for more information, click here). He was released in December 2011. At last report, he had been spending time with his family and was planning to have a medical check-up to assess his health after more than seven years in prison.

While Y Wo Nie was imprisoned, his wife told VOM partners, "I'm worried for my husband but God gives me His comfort that He is always with us though we have to face sickness or hard situations; He will help me to overcome my hard times."

Please join us in prayer!

• Praise the Lord that this pastor has been released! 
• Pray that God will give him complete and lasting healing. 
• Pray that, like Paul, Y Wo Nie's time in prison will result in the advancement of God's kingdom (Philippians 1:12-14). 
• Pray that God will strengthen the faith of this pastor's family and friends.

For more information on the persecuted Church in Vietnam, visit the Vietnam Country Report.

Two imprisoned Christians in Pakistan released

(Sources: Asia News, Compass Direct News)

Blasphemy charges against a 74-year-old believer have been dropped while a Christian woman who was brutally beaten by police while pregnant has been released on bail due to lack of evidence.

The elderly believer arrested in June 2010 under Pakistan's contentious blasphemy law, which is often used to persecute Christians in the predominantly Muslim nation, was released after 18 months in prison. Rehmat Masih was charged shortly after he had engaged in a dispute with a local Muslim leader, Tahir Hameed, who wanted to lay claim to some plots of land that belonged to local Christians. Hameed's brother was the man who accused Rehmat of insulting Muhammad (for more information, click here). After months of investigation, the court ruled that statements of witnesses were filed too late and were full of contradictions.

Thirty-year-old Salma Emmanuel and her husband, 30-year-old Emmanuel Rasheed, were severely beaten for three days when they refused to confess to false allegations in November 2011 (for more information, click here). Salma was taken to a hospital in critical condition and the life of her unborn child was also threatened. Rasheed, who was freed on bail in November, lost his job as did his wife, who was falsely accused of theft by the woman who employed her as a maid. The couple is now struggling to support their three children. Salma was released on bail in December 2011 after police failed to produce evidence incriminating her.

Please join us in prayer!

• Praise God that these faithful believers have been freed! 
• Please pray that Salma and Emmanuel will find employment and will be able to provide for their family. 
• Pray that the lives of these believers will be an encouragement and will offer hope to other Christians imprisoned in Pakistan. 
• Please pray that other persecuted Christians in Pakistan will endure the trials before them by trusting in the Lord.

For more on the persecution of Pakistani Christians, go to the Pakistan Country Report.

Update on recently released Iranian Christian woman

Arezo Teymouri

Arezo Teymouri and her husband, Arash Kermanjani, were arrested in Iran in 2010 at the home of Vahik and Sonia Abrahamian. The couples were taken to the Ministry of Islamic Guidance prison, where they were abused physically and psychologically and held in solitary confinement during their first 40 days in prison.

Arezo, Arash, and Sonia were released from prison in April 2011. Arezo and Arash left soon afterwards for Turkey, where they received medical treatment.

A VOM contact recently reported, "The major problem with Arezo's leg – which would have required major surgery – is now gone! She was jumping up and down, to the initial consternation of her husband. It appears that the leg is healed!"

Arezo has been able to pick up Turkish easily, and they have been well received. Praise God!

Vahik and Sonia have also left Iran, arriving in the Netherlands in September (for more information, click here).

Thank you for praying for these Iranian brothers and sisters! To learn about other prayer needs for Iranian Christians, please visit our Iran Country Report.

Interview with recently released Chinese pastor

Pastor Zhang while he was still in prison. 

Chinese Pastor Zhang Rongliang, also known as Uncle Z, has shared that the seven years and six months he spent in prison were a fruitful time of ministry, reports our sister mission, VOM-USA.

Zhang is still recovering from severe health problems after completing his full sentence on August 31, 2011. He was immediately admitted to a hospital for 15 days where doctors monitored Zhang’s high blood pressure and diabetes (for more information, click here).

In early December 2004 Zhang disappeared, and eventually, the Chinese government admitted they had him in custody. Zhang was sentenced to seven years and six months in prison for possessing and using a forged passport — which typically carries a six-month sentence. People and organizations around the world pressured Chinese Communist leaders to release Zhang. Thousands of individuals wrote letters and prayed while multiple organizations worked to secure his release.

“I am happy that you and others tried to arrange for my release, but in one way, I am happy that you failed,” Zhang told a VOM contact in China. “You almost made a big mistake. If you had been successful, there would be no church in that prison today.”

In a recent interview, a VOM contact asked about Zhang’s most recent prison experience:

VOM: Uncle Z, most people I know have the same question for you — How could you endure prison for so many years?

Zhang: First let me say that while I was in prison, I remembered our friendship and the times you helped our church. I could feel inside my heart that you were doing something to try to help me. Also, I believed many people and organizations and governments in the West were speaking out about my situation.

To answer your question, I want to remind you that in my life, I have become accustomed to living in prison. This is the fifth time I have been in prison. So now, you see, I have spent one fourth of my life in prison and in some ways I have needed to adapt, to become accustomed to prison.

The second answer to this question is that the entire time I was in prison, I knew that many Christian brothers and sisters were praying for me constantly. So I had strength to overcome.

Finally, I want to remind you that our church movement has for years sent out missionaries to the unreached people groups of China and more recently to the Muslim peoples of the world. The missionaries leave their homes to go to a new environment. They preach the gospel in the area where they are called to preach. You have followed the call of God to China. I am the same as you. I consider myself and I treat myself as one who is a missionary. The difference is that God called me to preach to the prisoners.

For the full interview, click here.

The Overcomers: Iran

Pastor Vahik Abrahamian, a 45-year-old Armenian Christian, was released from prison on the morning of August 29. Praise God! Watch this 1-minute video clip to find out more.


For more videos like this, visit our multimedia site.

Zhang Rongliang released from prison!

Praise God!
Zhang Rongliang has been released!
(Photo: ChinaAid)

Zhang Rongliang, a prominent house church leader sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison in 2004, was released nine months early on August 31, reports VOM partner ChinaAid.

Zhang was charged with "attaining a passport through cheating" and "illegal border crossing" after attending several international mission conferences. Before his 2004 arrest, he had spent 12 years in prison on five different occasions during which he suffered severe torture, including electric shocks.

While Zhang was in prison there were serious concerns about his health. In 2007, it was reported that he was near death due to diabetes and high blood pressure (for more, click here). However, his family reports that Zhang is now in good health.

Zhang and his family members thank all those around the world who advocated on his behalf.

To read the full report from ChinaAid, click here.

Vahik Abrahamian released from prison in Iran!

Pastor Vahik has been released!
(Photo: Middle East Concern)

Pastor Vahik Abrahamian, a 45-year-old Armenian Christian, was released from prison on the morning of August 29, reports Farsi Christian News Network.

Pastor Vahik and his wife, Sonia Keshish Avanesian, were arrested in Hamedan along with another Christian couple in September 2010.

Sonia and the other couple were released from prison in April 2011. Officials told Sonia they would release her husband 10 days later, but Vahik continued to be detained at Iran's notorious Evin prison in Tehran.

The couples had been accused of various offences, including propagating Christianity, opposing the Islamic Republic of Iran, and having contact with exiled opposition figures (for more information, click here).

During his one year imprisonment, Pastor Vahik suffered from poor health and the prison's deplorable conditions.

A member of Pastor Vahik's family has shared that the whole family is "rejoicing" and "expressed their gratitude first to God for His gracious protection and intervention and secondly to the Christian family worldwide who have not ceased praying and advocating on their behalf."

For the full report, click here.

Thank the Lord for this wonderful answer to prayer! 

• Ask the Lord to give Vahik and Sonia the grace and strength they need to overcome this trial. 
• Pray also for their protection. 
• Pray this news will serve as an encouragement to all Christian believers in Iran.

Church leaders released in China

Five Christians have been released from
prison. Praise God! (Photo: ChinaAid) 

Back in May, we shared that Yang Caizhen, a member of the Linfen-Fushan house church in Shanxi province, was released from detention on medical parole (click here for more).

We are pleased to report that three women detained with her – Gao Fuqin, Zhao Guoai and Yang Hongzhen – have also been released. A Christian man, Li Shuangpin, was also freed. Praise God!

All five of these leaders suffered physical and mental torture while detained at labour camps.

The Christians were arrested following a police raid on their church’s grounds in September 2009. More than 30 believers were seriously injured and 17 buildings were destroyed in the attack (click here more information).

The released Christians have shared, “We sincerely urge all brothers and sisters around the world to pray for Linfen church.... At the same time, we also ask brothers and sisters to remember in prayer the Linfen leaders who are still suffering in jail: Brothers Xiao Guang, Yang Xuan and Cui Jiaxing, and sisters Yang Rongli and Zhang Huamei. May the Lord move the police to release them early so that they can be reunited with their families. We who have been released express our most sincere gratitude to the brothers and sisters around the world who have been concerned about us and who have helped us. May God remember your prayers and what you did. God is with as all!”

You can read the full report from ChinaAid here.

The October edition of The Voice of the Martyrs newsletter will include updates on other house churches in China facing opposition from authorities. You can subscribe to this free resource online.

Chinese house-church Christians and Korean Bible instructor released!

A cell phone captures images of the
May 22 arrest of 20 Chinese Christians.

More than 20 house-church Christians who were detained when dozens of police raided their worship service in Hubei province on May 22 have been released, reported ChinaAid Association sources.

During the raid by some 40 policemen, one believer was beaten and two were taken away by police in handcuffs.

Also released were a Korean Bible instructor and his Chinese wife who were formally detained for five days following a May 10 raid on a Bible training seminar attended by 49 senior house-church leaders in Zhengzhou, capital of Henan province. The house-church leaders were all released the next day, and two other Koreans were expelled.

Praise the Lord for the release of these individuals!