Recent Updates from Turkmenistan, China and Ethiopia

by Staff
October 17, 2007

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Turkmenistan:
Pastor Vyacheslav Kalataevsky (49), who was given a three-year labour camp sentence in May for "illegally" crossing the border in 2001 (see www.persecution.net/news/turkmenistan18.html for more details), has been amnestied, according to an October 9 report from Forum 18. Kalataevsky was transferred from a labour camp to a police holding cell in the city of Arzuv on October 8. He is to remain in police custody while the authorities decide whether to deport him. His family, however, is hoping that he will be allowed to stay with them until the decision has been made. The conditions at the detention centre are reported to be abysmal. The Ukrainian embassy has appealed to the Turkmen authorities on Kalataevsky's behalf, requesting that he be released and allowed to remain with his family in Turkmenistan.

China:
Two previously imprisoned Beijing house church activists, Hua Huiqi (see www.persecution.net/news/china168.html) and Liu Fenggang (see www.persecution.net/news/china158.html), have been held under house arrest since October 1. According to an October 4 report from China Aid Association, two dozen police officers have been stationed around their homes. Several Public Security Bureau (PSB) officers have been stationed on Pastor Hua's roof in order to prevent anyone from leaving or entering the building. On October 3, eight PSB officers broke Hua's bedroom window and cut off the house's electrical supply.

Ethiopia:
VOMC sources have reported that evangelist Mulu Telahun and underground church leader Jemmal Senbeto, who were both imprisoned in the state of Benishangul in September (see www.persecution.net/news/ethiopia32.html for more details), were recently released. Senbeto, however, was sent back to prison two days following his release. Telahun, who was freed on October 1, continues to face extreme pressure from Muslims for his Christian activities and is being strictly monitored by local authorities. Other Muslim converts in the region are reportedly in hiding.