Vatican deal has been implemented successfully’ says China’s foreign ministry

Sep 19, 2020

By Courtney Mares
A spokesman for China’s foreign ministry said Thursday that China’s interim deal with the Vatican has been “implemented successfully.”

He made the remark days before the provisional agreement signed by the Vatican and China on Sept. 22, 2018, is due to expire.

“With the concerted efforts from both sides, the interim agreement on the appointment of bishops between China and the Vatican has been implemented successfully since it was signed around two years ago,” Zhao Lijian, spokesman for China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said at a press conference Sept. 10.

Bloomberg reported Sept. 9 that two anonymous sources had said that the deal would be renewed in the coming weeks.

Following the agreement, and in line with the Chinese Communist Party’s program of “sinicization,” state officials in different regions of China have continued to remove crosses and demolish church buildings, and underground Catholics and clergy continue to report harassment and detention.

The Chinese government spokesman went on to say that the Vatican and China had “accumulated more mutual trust and consensus through a series of positive interactions” since the beginning of 2020, citing mutual support during the COVID-19 pandemic.

During the coronavirus pandemic, the state-affiliated Chinese Catholic Patriotic Association and the Zhejiang Province’s Chinese Catholic educational administration committee issued new regulations on the reopening of churches requiring Chinese “patriotism” to be added to the celebration of the liturgy.

On July 1 a National Security Law came into force in Hong Kong that criminalizes new categories of “secession,” “subversion,” “terrorism” and “collusion with foreign forces.” Anyone convicted under the law will receive a minimum of 10 years in prison, with the possibility of a life sentence.

Cardinal Joseph Zen, emeritus Bishop of Hong Kong, has said that he has “no confidence” that the new National Security Law will respect the religious freedom of Catholics.––CNA