At the International Human Rights Group we are preparing to protect religious freedom at the Beijing 2008 Olympics.  This Olympics Games is particularly troubling to us because of the Chinese record on human rights.  Media organizations have been covering a variety of instances where the government is “cleaning up” Christians and missionaries in advance of the Games.  Arrests have occurred for Chinese Christians.  Foreign missionaries are being expelled so that the base of Christian outreach is as weak as possible when the Games begin.

All of this is troubling because the Beijing Committee promised to improve the Chinese record on human rights.  They promised to honor religious freedom and political freedom.  We have been protecting the rights of missionaries and others at major sporting events since the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.  The Beijing Games promise to be the most challenging event yet.

You might not be aware that hundreds of missionaries from a variety of mission organizations and churches will be at this major sporting event.  They will not be there to attend Olympic sporting events; they will be there to share their faith with the hundreds of thousands of people who will come from around the world to enjoy the largest party in the world this year.

The Olympics are a great outreach opportunity—especially in a closed country like China.  The people who are gathered are relaxed.  They are not rushing to work or taking care of urgent business.  They are gathered in large crowds and small gatherings to take in the festivities that surround such sporting events. 

Our job is simple.  We begin by making sure the organizers of the event understand the legal right that our clients have to share their faith in public places.  We do this by sending a comprehensive letter detailing the legal protection of Christians in the public areas in the cities where these events are held.  When necessary, we go beyond merely sending a legal letter and meet with key leaders in the government or the organizing committee to better explain the rights involved.

The second phase of our work is to monitor events on the ground at these events; we will be doing this in Beijing and its environs in August.  This means that we are in the key locations of the event making sure that large outreaches and individual evangelism are permitted as required by international law.  We travel with some of the missionaries and observe their activities, working with local police officers when it is appropriate.

This allows the missionaries to concentrate on their outreach without fear.  We become their advocate before local authorities.

Additionally, we will be meeting with various mission teams and helping them understand how to approach officials who are trying to stop their message from getting out.  This education process is personal and has proven very effective at past events such as the Athens Olympics in 2004.  Because we were in Athens missionaries who were threatened with arrest were permitted to continue their outreach without being arrested and without further threats of arrest.

Our intention is to provide the same level of commitment and service to those who are working in Beijing to share their faith and convert others to Christianity.

We work to keep the door open for the proclamation of the Gospel at a time when literally hundreds of thousands of people from around the world have the chance to hear the Gospel, many of them for the first time.