Yang Rongli, born on October 3, 1958, in Huozhou City, Shanxi Province, is a former employee of the Veteran Affairs Office at Shanxi Normal University. In 1998, she became a full-time leader of her Christian church and helped grow it from a small group of a few dozen to a congregation of thousands. In 2004, during the construction of the Golden Lampstand Cathedral in Linfen City, Yang faced intense pressure from authorities, including tactics such as cutting off water and electricity.
By 2009, as the church’s location gained commercial value, officials attempted to demolish it, meeting strong resistance from the congregation. In response, on September 13, 2009, over 500 police officers surrounded the church and its Gospel Shoe Factory, injuring more than 100 worshippers. Further confrontations occurred, and on September 25, six church leaders, including Yang, were detained while traveling to Taiyuan City to file a complaint. Yang was arrested on October 11, 2009, charged with “illegal occupation of agricultural land” and “gathering a crowd to disrupt traffic,” and sentenced to seven years in prison on November 25, 2009. She served her time at Xinkang Prison and was released on October 10, 2016.
Despite the destruction of her church, Yang continued to hold outdoor services, enduring ongoing police harassment. On August 7, 2021, she and several church leaders were arrested in Yaodu District, Linfen City, on charges of “fraud.” While some were released on bail, Yang, her husband Pastor Wang Xiaoguang, and six others were formally arrested by the Yaodu District Procuratorate. The case was later transferred to the Linfen City Procuratorate for further review.
After repeated delays, the trial for the Golden Lampstand Church case is now scheduled for October 22, 2024, in the Yaodu District Court, unless postponed again.
