Lee Man-hee, Shincheonji Chairman, "Sorry to the People"... Two Deep Bows of Apology (Comprehensive)

Lee Man-hee, the president of Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony (Shincheonji), is performing a deep bow at a press conference related to the COVID-19 situation held at the Shincheonji Palace of Peace in Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi-do on the 2nd. Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporters Kim Bong-gi and Yoo Byung-don] Lee Man-hee, the chairman of Shincheonji Church of Jesus, bowed deeply twice on the 2nd and said, "I humbly apologize," regarding the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19) centered around Shincheonji members.

At a press conference held that afternoon at the Peace Palace in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province, Chairman Lee said, "I sincerely apologize to the people regarding the COVID incident," adding, "It was not intentional, but many infections occurred."

The press conference was delayed by about 10 minutes from the original schedule due to difficulties in coordination between Shincheonji and Gyeonggi Province regarding the venue. Chairman Lee, wearing a mask, appeared dressed in a gray suit with a yellow tie.

He said, "I am truly ashamed," and added, "Please forgive me for not responding properly." He continued, "During this busy time, I am very grateful that the government authorities are making such efforts for our church," and added, "There are things we should have done, but we could not protect ourselves with our own strength, so I am thankful that the government authorities helped prevent the spread in our church."

He emphasized, "The government authorities have made their best efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19, and we are also actively cooperating," and said, "We will do our best to the extent of our ability and will not spare any human or material support to the government."

Lee Man-hee, the president of Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony (Shincheonji), is speaking at a press conference related to the COVID-19 situation held on the 2nd at the Shincheonji Palace of Peace in Gapyeong-gun, Gyeonggi-do. / Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

Chairman Lee re-read a special letter sent to the believers that day, saying, "Shincheonji Church of Jesus will actively cooperate with government policies by providing the full list of all Shincheonji believers, conducting thorough investigations, and enabling COVID-19 testing," and added, "Everything will proceed on the premise that the government establishes measures to maintain and secure the personal information of the believers." He also said, "Let us be believers who do our best to overcome COVID-19 by actively cooperating with government policies."

However, regarding public opinion that points to Shincheonji as the source of COVID-19, he emphasized the inevitability of the incident by citing Wang Geon, the founder of Goryeo. He said, "There is a story that when a disease spread and the army was dying, Wang Geon went to the enemy country, knelt down, and obtained medicine to save the soldiers," and pointed out, "Which parent would just watch while a terrifying disease spreads to the point of death?"

He continued, "(COVID-19 is) a great disaster, and we are making every effort to prevent it. The government is also tirelessly working hard to prevent the spread," but "Now is not the time to judge who is right or wrong. For the people and the country, all these issues must be resolved. We must do our best efforts, and then heaven will also take care of us," he emphasized.

Earlier, Shincheonji had planned to hold the press conference in the basement level 1 of the Peace Palace, but Gyeonggi Province notified that it would not allow the press conference inside the Peace Palace facilities due to concerns about COVID-19 infection, so it was held at the external entrance.

Meanwhile, Seoul City filed a complaint against Shincheonji on the 1st for not taking active measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported that among the confirmed COVID-19 cases in the country, 57% are related to the Shincheonji Daegu Church.

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