Attorney defending unregistered Beijing church flees to Taiwan

A Chinese lawyer relocated to a different country due to pressure from the Chinese government after she legally defended leaders of Beijing's Zion Church. The communist government made headlines for arresting and charging 18 Zion Church members last October, including Pastor Jin Mingri, also known as Ezra.

Chinese authorities alleged that congregants violated government restrictions by worshiping in an unregistered congregation. The Chinese government released Pastor Jin in early July after President Donald Trump visited China and talked over the case with Xi Jinping. At least eight detainees remained in custody.

VDoor Law Firm partner Ruth Wang served as the church’s legal defense until her move to Taiwan due to the mounting pressure from the Chinese officials. Wang and her law firm colleagues faced direct pressure from officials to either dissolve the firm or be forcibly shut down, she told the Associated Press in an interview published on Thursday.

The government revoked the law license of VDoor founder and Wang’s mentor, Zhang Kai, and barred him from leaving the country, Wang told the Associated Press. Chinese authorities called Wang in August and requested an in-person meeting. Wang, on vacation in Japan at the time of the call, decided not to go back to China and flew to Taiwan instead, she told the Associated Press.

Taiwanese authorities said they would allow Wang to stay temporarily, but refused to accept political asylum cases from China due to the island nation's contentious relationship with the Chinese government. Wang considered studying in the United States or Canada as a means of relocating, the Associated Press reported.

She characterized her family’s future as uncertain, and likened it to the Old Testament story of Ruth and Boaz. God sent Boaz to help Ruth, whose future was uncertain after moving to a new place, and Wang believed God would send a “Boaz” to help her family, she said.