CHINA: Christian Bookstore Owner Still Without Trial
24 June 08
‘Model citizen’ in Beijing illegally detained for three months.
A hearing expected yesterday by relatives of Christian bookstore owner Shi Weihan, detained in a Chinese prison without charges, did not take place.
Sources in China had said that a court date was expected as yesterday marked the end of three months of his detention without charges. Public Security Bureau (PSB) forces are prohibited from holding Chinese citizens for more than two months without formal charges.
Police initially arrested Shi on November 28, 2007, charging him with “illegal business practices,” but officials ordered his release on January 4, citing insufficient evidence. Shi was arrested again on March 19 and police have held him virtually incommunicado, denying all but one visit from his lawyer, and refusing family visits.
Shi’s store, located near the Olympic Village, operated legally and sold only books for which he had obtained government permission. Under his Holy Spirit Trading Co., Shi printed Bibles and Christian literature without authorization for distribution to local house churches, according to Asia Times Online.
“Despite having held Shi beyond the time legally allowed, absent formal charges or a court hearing, the PSB still refuses to allow his family or attorney to see him,” said a source close to Shi’s lawyer. “Claiming an ongoing investigation in what they are calling ‘a complex case,’ they have managed to hold the owner of a legally registered Christian bookstore in an undisclosed location without giving any assurances that he is receiving his needed diabetic medicine.”
The PSB has stated that it will delay action on the case indefinitely, raising questions about Shi’s health and safety.
His attorney, Zhang Xingshui, has been allowed to visit Shi only once, noting that he was losing weight and showed signs of a possible “allergic reaction.” At the same time, without a proper diet and medication, diabetics can exhibit symptoms including fatigue, weight loss, poor wound healing and dry and itchy skin that could be misinterpreted as an allergic reaction.
The 37-year-old travel agent and bookstore owner was released in January for lack of sufficient evidence on suspicion of “illegal business practices.” After his re-arrest two months later, he has been denied formal charges, fair access to representation, appropriate medical care and the legally guaranteed family visits.
Many of Shi’s friends, acquaintances and business clients are beginning to question the PSB’s motives in this action, according to the source close to his attorney.
“Were Shi to suffer dire health consequences or drop into diabetic coma, which can result in death without proper emergency treatment, it could leave the appearance that the PSB may have intended this very result,” he said.
Shi was last seen in the custody of the Beijing City Public Security Bureau after having been transferred from the Haidian District Police Station.
The source said documentation offered by the PSB to justify a right to hold Shi seems to have been tampered with. A copy of an arrest warrant issued to the Haidian District Sub-station giving it permission to re-arrest Shi was doctored and changed to look as though the Beijing City PSB was the authorized arresting authority, he said.
Originally, the Beijing PSB denied having Shi. Officials claimed they did not know his whereabouts, the source said. After Shi’s attorney applied pressure, officials finally admitted having him and allowed the single visit with his attorney.
Since then, they have refused to discuss his whereabouts or condition with either the family or the attorney.
In the hopes that Shi will some day be granted a trial, numerous friends and business acquaintances have described him as a model citizen of China. They say he has inspired them to love China by his patriotism and love for his homeland, and that he is known for his selfless sacrifice on behalf of poor and disenfranchised rural Christians and minority children.
“Foreign business acquaintances and travel agency clients of Shi’s find it ironic that this patriotic travel agent, active in promoting travel for the Olympics, would be arrested in his offices near the Olympic Village in Beijing and held without explanation until this late hour just weeks prior to the beginning of the Olympic Games,” the source said.
Source: Compass
- Pray for Shi and his deteriorating health.
- Pray that Shi will be allowed to see his family, attorney and receive medical attention as a result of the lack of treatment he has been given.
- Pray that Shi will have the strength to forgive those who persecute him and will have the boldness to evangelise about our awesome Father!