China wants to "socialist rewrite" the Bible and Quran
The British newspaper “Daily Mail” writes in a report that Beijing intends to present a new version of the Quran and the Bible based on “socialist values.” The leadership of the Chinese Communist Party ordered a comprehensive evaluation of religious classics in November.
On Wednesday, December 25, the German Catholic news agency, citing the Daily Mail, reported that the Quran and the Bible are being rewritten and reviewed in China. The website of this English publication quotes a senior Chinese official as saying that the new versions of religious books are not to contain material that contradicts the beliefs and views of the Communist Party. According to the official, sections that are deemed undesirable by the censorship office will be changed and rewritten.
The issue apparently stems from an order issued by the Chinese Communist Party in November to conduct a comprehensive evaluation of classical religious books with the aim of revising content that is inconsistent with the progress of the times. The order, of course, makes no mention of the Quran or the Bible as the holy books of Muslims and Christians.
The French newspaper "Le Figaro" also writes in this context that religious authorities must, in compliance with the order of Xi Jinping, General Secretary of the Communist Party and President of China, explain and interpret the ideology of various religions in accordance with the "fundamental values of socialism" and the "necessities of the times."
In fact, religious leaders have been asked to build “a religious system with Chinese characteristics” and to prevent “extremist ideas” and “heretical ideas” in the country by re-evaluating and rewriting religious books.
The news comes as China faces international criticism over its treatment of its Uighur Muslim minority, with UN experts saying at least one million Muslims are being held and brainwashed in camps in Xinjiang, western China.
China says these camps were built to combat terrorism and re-educate individuals, but the International Union of Investigative Journalists has provided evidence showing that Uyghurs are being punished in these centers and forced to express remorse and confess against themselves.
The Chinese ambassador to the UK has called such news fake.
Source: DW
