Pastor Gong Shengliang (龚圣亮) is the founder and leader of the South China Church, an evangelical house-church fellowship with some 50,000 members across several provinces. In December 2001, he was convicted and sentenced to death under China's anti-cult legislation. Responding to international pressure, China dropped the religious charge and the death penalty and ordered a re-trial. Pastor Gong was convicted of multiple counts of rape and given a life sentence.