The 2018 White Paper emphasizes the need to ensure independence from foreign influence. Under Xi, “foreign-originated” Islamic, Catholic, Protestant and Buddhist beliefs have come under further scrutiny. From protests and violent clashes in Xinjiang to self-immolation by Tibetan monks and nuns after 2009, the party identified “misguided” or “extremist” beliefs as root causes – not failed state policies and structural discrimination of minorities. Some of the most prominent human rights activists and lawyers in the 2000s were Christians advocates for more autonomy in minority areas were often practicing Muslims or Buddhists. The Party State remained concerned that religious faith could fuel existential risks for the regime’s security. After attempts to restrict them resulted in large scale protests, China’s government banned the Falun Gong in 1999, declaring it an “evil cult”. Alongside rising membership in officially recognised religious organisations and unofficial house churches, new movements emerged, most prominently the Falun Gong. From the mid-1980s, the reform era permitted new space for religious practice and numbers of believers rose significantly.īut the leadership upheld its Marxist convictions that religious beliefs were a “temporary phenomenon” and would fade with economic progress. Practices and publications were banned, and many religious sites destroyed in political campaigns, such as those during the Cultural Revolution. Under Mao, religion was regarded as backwards and something to be overcome by force. The Party’s relationship with religion has been fraught and tumultuous. Party members are forbidden from following religious beliefs. There are also numerous underground churches and religious groups, despite repeated attempts to integrate them into the official structures or disband them. This does not account for the plethora of traditional folk beliefs. According to a 2018 government White Paper, China has more than 200 million registered believers. Since the early 1950s, they are organised and represented by official patriotic associations. The Chinese state recognises five official religions: Buddhism, Taoism, Islam, Catholicism, and Protestant faiths. Laws and policies not only place religion under close supervision, but also require religious organisations to actively propagate CCP ideology through religious content. Only “normal religious activities” (正常的宗教活动) defined by the Party State are protected. Citizens are free to believe but limited in their right to express their faith. But the term used in the Constitution and regulations is more correctly translated as “freedom of religious belief” (宗教信仰自由). In English translations, China’s official documents and statements often refer to “freedom of religion”. The relationship – or degree of separation – between state and church, or religious organisations, is also shaped by the historical evolution of institutions. Countries take different approaches in regulation. This freedom may be limited by laws to protect public safety, morals, or the rights of others. Freedom of religion is protected in international human rights law and includes the right to manifest one’s religion or belief in worship, practice, and teaching.
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