As a result of the enshrining of war criminals in the Nanjing Massacre by a temple in China's eastern-coastal Jiangsu Province, both the National Religious Affairs Administration and Guangdong Provincial CC&TSPM issued notices respectively, demanding "evaluation, rectification, and searches of potential hazards in religious sites".
The National Religious Affairs Administration on July 29 ordered a comprehensive self-inspection and correct irregularities in religious venues for an incident that four war criminals of the Nanjing Massacre had been enshrined at the Xuanzang Temple in Nanjing, Jiangsu province, which was exposed on July 21. The bureaus of ethnic and religious affairs were remanded to strengthen their roles in guidance and supervision of religious sites, schools, and groups, as well as to guide religious groups to improve and complete rules and regulations. They were also required to assist religious circles in strictly administering religion by improving the level of self-education, self-management, and self-discipline, in order to put an end to the occurrence of such issues in religious circles.
Guangdong CC&TSPM released an announcement on July 28, requesting the CC&TSPMs, seminaries (theological training centers), and churches to conduct self-review and self-rectification on items displayed in the venues, including pictures, videos, sculptures, inscriptions, materials, and illegal printed materials to check if any of them is related to criminals or sensitive persons. Once a violation is found, it needs to be reported to the local religious authorities and the provincial CC&TSPM.
- Translated by Stella He
