China: Whether police refuse services to Catholics in favour of Buddhists, particularly in Guangdong province (1996-1999)
| Publisher | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada |
| Author | Research Directorate, Immigration and Refugee Board, Canada |
| Publication Date | 1 March 1999 |
| Citation / Document Symbol | CHN31466.E |
| Cite as | Canada: Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, China: Whether police refuse services to Catholics in favour of Buddhists, particularly in Guangdong province (1996-1999), 1 March 1999, CHN31466.E, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/3ae6ab1c80.html [accessed 17 September 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
No reports of incidents in which police refused to provide services to Catholics in favour of Buddhists could be found among the sources consulted by the Research Directorate. In a telephone interview a representative of the Cardinal Kung Foundation, an organization which supports the Roman Catholic Church in China, stated that he was unaware of any interfaith struggle between Buddhists and Catholics in Guangdong province or anywhere else in China (9 March 1999).
A professor of sociology at the University of California at San Diego who specializes in Chinese religion corroborated this information, adding that Chinese government policy and practice would not attempt to promote any form of religious worship (9 March 1999). However, the professor did state that it was not inconceivable that such a dynamic might develop at a very localized level (ibid.).
This was corroborated by a Ph.D. candidate in social anthropology at Harvard who is researching a Catholic community in Guangdong. He stated that although there are criticisms of differential treatment of Catholics by the police, this is unlikely to be the result of Buddhist interference (9 March 1999). The Ph.D. candidate elaborated that although tensions do exist between Buddhist and Catholic communities in Guangdong, particularly in the Chaozhou area, they are neither the result of, nor characterized by, organized campaigns (ibid.).
Further information was provided by the China Program Director of the Coalition of Christian Colleges and Universities, who stated that he too was unaware of specific incidents in which police had refused services to Catholics in favour of Buddhists in Guangdong province (10 March 1999). However, he had heard reports of such incidents in Yunnan province where the situation is more complex owing to differences in the ethnic composition of the various religious groups (ibid.).
This Response was prepared after researching publicly accessible information currently available to the Research Directorate within time constraints. This Response is not, and does not purport to be, conclusive as to the merit of any particular claim to refugee status or asylum. Please find below the list of additional sources consulted in researching this Response.
References
Cardinal Kung Foundation, Stamford CT. 9 March 1999. Telephone interview with representative.
China Program Director, Coalition of Christian Colleges and Universities, Hong Kong. 10 March 1999. Correspondence.
Ph.D. Candidate in Social Anthropology at Harvard University, Seoul, Korea. 9 March 1999. Correspondence.
Professor of Sociology, University of California at San Diego. 9 March 1999. Telephone interview.
Additional Sources Consulted
Amnesty International. July 1996. Religious Repression in China.
China Rights Forum [New York]. 1997-1998.
China Journal [Canberra]. 1997-1999.
Human Rights Watch (HRW). December 1995. China: Religious Persecution Persists.
Human Rights Watch/Asia (HRW). October 1997. China: State Control of Religion.
Electronic sources: IRB Databases, Internet, REFWORLD, LEXIS/NEXIS, WNC.