Chinese Security Officials Beat and Detain Unregistered Catholic Priest and Laity

Chinese public security officers detained Lin Daixian, 40, an unregistered Catholic priest, and 10 other Catholics, on July 25 in Pingtan, Fujian province, reports the Cardinal Kung Foundation, a U.S. NGO that monitors the unregistered Catholic community in China. Father Lin is a diocesan priest of the Fuzhou diocese, according to the report. Security officials detained Lin while he was saying Mass with 50 Catholic faithful in a private home in Pingtan. Some of the faithful resisted the officers and were beaten and injured. Lin, a seminarian, and nine other Catholics were taken to the Pingtan City Detention Center. Father Lin was detained three times in 2000 and 2001.