The PRC State Council promulgated the 77-article, 2017 Religious Affairs Regulation (RAR) on August 28, 2017, which will come into force on February 1, 2018. According to a Reuters report of September 7, 2017, the new regulations “use strong and specific language about the need to protect China’s national security against threats from religious groups.” For example, Articles 3 and 4 state:
"The management of religious affairs upholds the principles of protecting what is lawful, prohibiting what is unlawful, suppressing extremism, resisting infiltration, and fighting crime…
…Religion must not be used by any individual or organization to engage in activities that endanger national security, disrupt public order, impair the health of citizens or obstruct the State educational system, as well as other activities that harm State or societal public interests, or citizens’ lawful rights and interests, and other such illegal activities.
Article 4 reaffirms that religious groups must demonstrate loyalty to China and couple religious practice with anti-state activities, practice the core socialist values; and preserve the unification of the country, ethnic unity, religious harmony and social stability…
On the 6th of September government leaders from the five officially approved religions held a conference in Beijing on “Chinese culture and religious sinicization” when they agreed that “the direction of religions is to integrate them with Chinese culture,” including in terms of doctrine and culture.
(Comment: The authorities have for years required the Chinese flag to be placed inside mosques in East Turkestan. More recently mosques have also been holding weekly flag raising ceremonies and displayed banners promoting loyalty to the Chinese Communist Party and “Chinese style Islam.”)