Forcing Chinese students to declare atheism is a new threat to religious freedom in China

A technical college in China has forced students to declare atheism, raising concerns about the future of religious freedom in the country.

A recent move by a technical college in China has sparked a wave of backlash and concerns about the country's growing restrictions on religious freedom. According to China Aid, the Tianjin Mechanical and Electrical Technical College's online system required students to select "no religious belief" on their personal information forms.

The human rights organization announced in a report that students are forced to declare themselves “atheists” or “non-believers.” This measure, which is effectively a form of coercion to deny religious beliefs, has been met with strong reactions from religious freedom advocates and Christian organizations.

In response, the Evangelical Alliance noted that in 2022, President Xi Jinping stated that he hated Christianity and feared attempts by foreign elements to overthrow him through religion, especially Christianity.

Numerous reports from China indicate that the government has in recent years adopted a consistent policy of restricting the presence of Christian symbols and activities. According to documents published by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), Chinese authorities have, at the behest of the central government, removed crosses from buildings and churches and replaced images of Jesus Christ with pictures of Xi Jinping.

Meanwhile, the Chinese government has imposed severe restrictions on children's religious activities. Those under 18 are banned from participating in mass worship, and the country's education system is tasked with promoting atheism and ideological loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party.

The New York Times also revealed in a 2016 report that Beijing authorities fear the "infiltration of religions," especially Christianity, and are pursuing a policy known as the "Sinicization of religions," a policy that aims to align religious beliefs with the teachings of the Communist Party.

These new actions at Tianjin University are another sign of the government's increasing control over the faith and conscience of Chinese citizens, a trend that many see as an organized effort to eliminate Christianity from the Chinese public sphere.

According to observers, such pressures not only violate universal human rights principles, but also reflect the Chinese government's growing fear of the spread of the Christian faith among the country's youth and elite.