Two of the eight detained Zion Church pastors and coworkers have pleaded guilty and asked for suspended sentences in the hope of being released, but the court has refused to let them go.

Wu Qiuyu and Wang Zhong have been in detention since the crackdown in October 2025 on the large unregistered Zion Church network. Recently they decided to admit the charges of “fraud” and “illegal business operations” in exchange for the prosecutor’s proposal of a suspended sentence and the hope of release. Each has a significant reason to seek release: Wu Qiuyu’s young children are being cared for by their grandparents in the absence of both parents, while Wang Zhong is suffering from severe coronary heart disease.

They are pictured with the other six detained leaders – top row from left: Pastor Wang Lin, Pastor Gao Yingjia, Elder Wang Zhong and Pastor Yin Huibin; second row from left: Pastor Liu Zhenbin, Pastor Lin Shucheng, Pastor Wang Cong and Wu Qiuyu. All are being held in Beihai’s First and Second Detention Centres in Guangxi.

On 28 August the church, family members and lawyers said that the local procuratorate had recommended that Wu Qiuyu and Wang Zhong be released on bail pending trial, but the Yinhai District Court of Beihai City has refused to release them. When Wu Qiuyu’s family asked the procuratorate why the Christians had not been let go, the response was, “We just make suggestions, and the decision is in the court.”

Wu Qiuyu: young children separated from their parents

Wu Qiuyu is the mother of two young children, a daughter and son who were only aged 1 and 2 at the time of her arrest. Her husband Pastor Yang Jun recently spoke about the ordeal the family is going through. The family is pictured together in a photo taken in 2024.

Wu Qiuyu and Yang Jun are active in Beijing Zion Church, where Pastor Yang oversees campus ministries. In October 2025 he was away on ministry in South Korea when police came and took Wu Qiuyu away in front of the children. Pastor Yang has not been able to return to China and the children are being cared for by their grandparents. The family says the reason Wu Qiuyu chose to plead guilty and accept punishment is entirely so she could go home as soon as possible to care for her children.

Wu Qiuyu’s family is very concerned about her health as she needs medication for a long-term mental health condition. Her lawyer submitted at least three applications for her release, but all were rejected.

Wang Zhong: severe coronary heart disease

Wang Zhong suffers from severe coronary heart disease and has undergone cardiac stent surgery. His father suddenly fell ill in early August and the family submitted a notice of critical illness and applied for bail, but the application was delayed by the court on the grounds of “the need to conduct a social harm investigation“.

The court said it needed to assess whether Wang Zhong posed a danger to society and whether he would appear for a trial that had been scheduled for 14-18 August. Authorities cited his history of heart disease, claiming he might suffer a heart attack while travelling to meet his father and would not make it to court.

Wang Zhong’s father was reportedly “deeply worried” about his detained son, but they did not get to see each other before he died on 18 August, after 11 days in intensive care.

Background

Zion Church is a large network of unregistered house churches in forty cities across China. It was founded by Pastor Ezra Jin Mingri, who was also detained in the crackdown of October 2025 but was released in July.

The “Zion 8” have been charged with fraud and illegal business operations – as China Aid explains, “In recent years, Chinese authorities have increasingly used financial-related criminal charges to suppress unofficial religious groups, so as to slander the church and freeze their assets.”

Chinese authorities tried to accelerate legal proceedings against them, scheduling a pre-trial hearing for 10 August followed by a trial on 14–18 August, which legal observers and human rights advocates said could be tied to Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s visit to the US in September. They suggested that authorities might be seeking to conclude the case before diplomatic meetings.

The pre-trial hearing and trial were postponed, however, after the defence team protested that the scheduled dates gave insufficient time to review the large case files. The court has not announced a new trial date.

(China Aid)

Photo Credits:

Photo collage: Zion Church/ChinaAid

Yang Jun and Wu Qiuyu with their children: Yang Jun