A Chinese lawyer who represented detained leaders of an underground church in Beijing has fled to Taiwan after facing growing pressure linked to her legal work, a rights group said.
ChinaAid said Ruth Wang, a partner at Vdoor Law Firm in Beijing, arrived in Taiwan on Wednesday “seeking protection from Taiwanese authorities.”
Wang represented detained leaders of Zion Church, an unregistered Christian community in Beijing. Some Christians in China worship in churches outside state-sanctioned religious institutions regulated by the government.
“Wang and her family left China because of concerns about increasing government pressure related to her legal work and representation of detained Beijing Zion Church leaders,” ChinaAid said Thursday, citing information it had obtained and reporting by The Associated Press.
Taiwan’s Mainland Affairs Council did not identify Wang but said Friday that authorities had provided temporary assistance to a Chinese citizen following reports that a lawyer from China was seeking help on the island.
The council said the government had provided a “Chinese national transferring through a Taiwanese airport” with “temporary accommodation on humanitarian grounds and is following up on the matter.”
Zion Church members, including founder Ezra Jin, were detained in October on “suspicion of the illegal use of information networks.”
Jin, also known by his Chinese name Mingri, was released in July after U.S. President Donald Trump raised his case with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Eight Zion Church members detained in October remain in custody, according to ChinaAid.
China’s ruling Communist Party has historically regarded organized religion with suspicion. Under Xi, authorities have tightened scrutiny of unofficial religious groups.
Authorities have also been cracking down on unregistered churches in recent months.
