A secretive cult that exploits the weak and vulnerable

The Quannengshen, or Eastern Lightening, sect was banned in China nearly 20 years ago, but it made national headlines after several of its underground followers were arrested for murdering a woman in Shandong province last month, report He Na in Henan province, Li Yao in Hong Kong and Adelina Zhang in New York.

At first glance, Zhangzhai looks like any other village in China. It seems to be a peaceful place, mainly populated by elderly people and children, but upon closer inspection, a very different picture emerges.

The villagers do not chat much; indeed, many appear to be looking at each other with hate in their eyes. Some of the surrounding fields have long been untended, and the streets are almost deserted. In most villages of this kind, the elderly sit outside their houses looking after the children of their sons and daughters who have moved to the cities in search of work. In Zhangzhai, some of the children are left at home, unsupervised, behind locked doors.