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 Sarang Jeil Church is the second religious group at the centre of a
major coronavirus outbreak in South Korea.
The government accuses the church of obstruction by not providing
complete lists of its members and spreading fake news that is
hindering anti-virus efforts, while church members they are victims
of a politically motivated witch hunt.
When the first infections were reported among church members on
August 12, the government says the group flouted social distancing
instructions, with the church's leader and others attending a
massive anti-Moon rally in downtown Seoul on August 15.
Speaking at the rally, Rev. Jun Kwang-hoon said Moon had "terrorised
our church with the Wuhan virus".
Jun, an outspoken government critic, later tested positive for the
virus. As of Thursday, at least 739 people affiliated with the
church have tested positive, out of 3,415 tested, according to the
Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC).
FABRICATED RESULTS?
The health ministry said on Sunday it had filed a complaint against
Jun for violating self-isolation rules by participating in the
rally, and for obstructing a medical investigation into the
outbreak.
Peter Ko, an attorney for Jun, said the church followed social
distancing guidelines and Jun was only at the rally for about 15
minutes.
Some Sarang Jeil members say the government is fabricating the test
results as part of a plot to persecute them.
Ko said when a person identifies themselves as a church member to
clinic staff, their results are more likely to come back positive.
"When we go get tested elsewhere and do not mention that we are a
member of the congregation, we'd test negative," he said. "I would
say there is a fabrication."
One of the church's pastors, Lee Hae-suk, said she was initially
told her test was negative, but the next day she received a message
saying she had tested positive.
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"I can think of no other reason than that this is a plot to kill Sarang Jeil
Church by increasing the number of confirmed cases," she said. When asked who
she thinks is behind the plot, she said: "Moon Jae-in."
Another theory advanced by some members is that the outbreak is a "terror
attack", possibly spread by tainted bottles of hand sanitizer.
Yang Dong-sook, another pastor, said at one point the church received bottles of
what looked like hand sanitizer that smelled more like chemicals.
"We ignored it then, but now that I see so many infections, I think it could be
true," she said.
Moon on Friday called for legal penalties for anyone obstructing anti-virus
measures, including those conducting "all-out misinformation campaigns".
Vice health minister Kim Gang-lip said the government was simply trying to
protect public health.
"Do not put credibility in the false news and rumours that are spreading at a
fast rate," he told a briefing on Friday.
RELIGIOUS OR POLITICAL?
Kwon Yon-gyong, dean of the Graduate School of Christian Studies at Seoul's
Soongsil University, said Sarang Jeil Church was closer to a political
organisation than a religious community.
"Rev. Jun Kwang-hoon is a political figure – a far right political icon. He is a
pastor, but has earned exposure through the far-right political movement.”
Another controversial religious group, the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, was
involved with South Korea's first major outbreak, accounting for almost a third
of the country’s total 16,670 cases.
Its leader was arrested after being accused of hindering the virus response by
hiding information about the church's members and gatherings, which he denies.
(This story was refiled to correct spelling of name in paragraph 5.)
(Reporting by Sangmi Cha, Hyun Young Yi and Josh Smith in Seoul; Editing by
Lincoln Feast.)
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