Christians only account for about 10% of Vietnam’s population, and they have long faced an uphill battle in terms of religious freedom. But problems for Christians escalated over the last few weeks as Authorities in the Central Highlands of Vietnam reportedly arrested 68 pastors for preaching the gospel and for allegedly refusing to consolidate their churches into a much smaller congregation. These pastors will join over 40 pastors who are already behind bars as authorities attempt to control the growth of Christianity in the region. Many of the pastors have been in jail since 2001.
True freedom of religion allows for the growth of religious minorities, but Christian groups in Vietnam are being unjustly restricted and Church leaders are being inhumanly imprisoned.
A ministry leader in Vietnam, who was given the pseudonym “Su” for security reasons, told ChristianAid, “The government wants to combine [churches] to limit their growth and have more control." He continued, "If the pastors refused to sign a paper saying they would combine and that their gatherings would not go over 500 people, they would be beaten or thrown into prison."
- Hits: 8898