Chungnam Province Conducts Unannounced Inspection of Shincheonji Church in Cheonan... Full Survey of Congregants

[Asia Economy (Naepo) Reporter Jeong Il-woong] Chungnam Province conducted an unannounced inspection of facilities related to the Shincheonji Church of Jesus located in Cheonan.

The province announced on the 2nd that on the night of the 1st, it conducted an emergency inspection of three Shincheonji-related facilities, including churches and offices in Seongjeong-dong and Bongmyeong-dong.

The inspection was carried out to verify the implementation status of measures such as facility closures after the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters notified that 25 additional Shincheonji-related facilities had been identified in the region as of the 29th of last month.

As of now, the Shincheonji-related facilities identified within Chungnam Province include ▲4 churches ▲2 missionary churches ▲20 missionary centers ▲8 cultural centers ▲18 meeting rooms ▲4 gospel rooms ▲1 education center ▲8 accommodations ▲1 office, totaling 66 locations.

The province disinfected these facilities and closed 58 of them, excluding the 8 accommodations. Additionally, a full survey has been completed targeting 6,560 Shincheonji believers active in the region.

As of midnight on the day of the inspection, the full survey identified 163 symptomatic individuals with mild symptoms such as low-grade fever. Among them, 74 have tested negative, 80 are still undergoing testing, and 9 have been transferred to other cities or provinces, according to the province.

The 6,299 asymptomatic Shincheonji believers are being continuously monitored once or twice daily, and the 98 individuals who did not respond to the full survey are being located through police assistance.

A provincial official stated, “We plan to conduct frequent on-site inspections of Shincheonji-related facilities jointly with the police until the (COVID-19) situation is resolved,” adding, “The province will prioritize the health and safety of residents and make every effort to block COVID-19.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.