Population
1.2 billion (mainland)
Han Chinese (93%)
Mongol
Zhuang
Manchu
Uighur
Capital City
Beijing
Leadership
President
Hu Jintao
Religion
Officially atheist Confucianism
Buddhism
Taoism
Muslim
Christian
China Ambassador
to the U.S.
Ambassador Yang Jiechi
Embassy of the People's Republic of China
2300 Connecticut Ave., NW
Washington DC 20008
Phone: (202) 328-2500
Fax: (202) 588-0032
Email: chinaembassy_us
@fmprc.gov.cn
BIO
Throughout China's long history,
many dynasties have impacted it's cultural, religious and military
development. Taking the Chinese people from ancestor
worship to Confucianism, then Taoism and finally
Buddhism, each dynasty added yet another flavor to
the already varied population of the region. While each
religious group saw its day in the sun, Kublai Khan's
militarization of China's leadership eventually led to its
official adoption of atheism.
By the 1950s, the People's Republic of China was
gaining power, forcing Tibet out of the hands of its
spiritual leaders and beginning its journey toward
becoming a major player in the world of religious
repression and persecution.
Under
Mao's authority, China saw the destruction of
much of its spiritual and
cultural history. But
dissatisfaction with the government and economic
uncertainty began to fuel feelings of unrest in the
population. The result was increased demands for
democracy and
freedom by means of protests and
demonstrations, such as the bloody skirmish
in
Tiananmen Square in 1989.
Where can I read
a general
report about religious repression
in China?
What
does China's government
think of these accusations?
Tell
me more about threats against Chinese Christians
position in the global economy, having become the newest member of the World Trade Organization. The
question is whether or not China could appreciate their special conditions for admittance: a demand that
they discontinue their human rights abuses.
Despite putting on a friendly face to the world, however, there is great evidence that these abuses are
continuing. Christians are limited to attending government-sanctioned churches, whose rules and monitoring
are not in line with the values of many Chinese Christians. The result has been the development of an
enormous underground Christian church throughout China. Government officials, threatened by
unregulated religion, have forced closures of these churches, imprisoning, torturing and even sentencing
their leaders to death. Worshippers are forced to gather late at night and in secret locations to avoid
persecution and imprisonment.