This Hanukkah, China’s tiny Jewish population is celebrating in secret for fear of a renewed crackdown by the Communist government against non-approved religions.
“Every time we celebrate, we are scared,” one man, speaking under the assumed name of Amir, told the Telegraph. “Whatever we do, we’re always very careful to make sure the authorities don’t find out.”
Amir is one of the roughly 1,000 people in Kaifeng, China, who can claim Jewish heritage — and one of only about 100 who actively practice the religion, the report said.
But despite the community’s minuscule size, it’s facing renewed pressure from the Chinese Communist Party, which recognizes just five religions: Buddhism, Catholicism, Daoism, Islam and Protestantism.
But even those faiths are tightly regulated, and have seen increasing hostility from the government, such as the internment of more than a million Uighur Muslims.
Last month, China was one of several countries to take the US to task during a United Nations panel on human rights, ironically claiming a climate of “increasingly severe religious intolerance” in America.
Meanwhile, in Kaifeng, the remnants of a 12th-century synagogue have been paved over, and what few Hebrew-language signs remained have been torn down, replaced with Chinese propaganda, the report said.
Pictures of Chinese President Xi Jinping have replaced exhibits on Kaifeng’s Jewish heritage in a local museum.
“It’s government policy. China doesn’t want to recognize us as Jews,” one man told the Telegraph. “Their goal is to make sure the next generation doesn’t have any Jewish identity.”
The crackdown is so intense that some members of the community refuse to be seen breaking bread together in public.
“It’s a small place,” one man told the Telegraph. “Restaurant managers know that we are the Jews, and they will report us to the authorities.”
But behind closed doors, members of the resilient community still celebrate Shabbat, attempt to keep kosher and decorate their homes with Judaica and photos of Israel, the report said.
They read Bibles — sticking to the Old Testament — and decades-old photocopied pamphlets of Jewish teachings dating to a time when China was more open to outside ideas.
In a written response to the Telegraph, China’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs denied any “so-called suppression.”
But Amir told the outlet that the proof is in the day-to-day life of Kaifeng’s Jewish community.
“We love our country. We’re not criminals, we just don’t eat pork,” he said. “Why do we have to practice our faith in secret, and live floating on the fringes of society? It’s really hard to bear.”