Lee Jae-myung "Prosecutors, Conduct a Forced Investigation on Shincheonji"

On the 2nd, Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, who visited the Shincheonji Jesus Church Training Center (Palace of Peace) in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi Province for epidemiological investigation including specimen collection of Lee Man-hee, Chairman of the Shincheonji Jesus Church, is answering reporters' questions.

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, urged, "The prosecution should promptly conduct a compulsory investigation into Shincheonji."

On the 5th, through Facebook, Governor Lee stated, "There is a conflict between the stance that delaying the compulsory investigation into Shincheonji would hinder quarantine efforts and the stance that immediate seizure and search should begin," adding, "In conclusion, compulsory investigation of Shincheonji and quarantine administration are separate matters, and now, when false data submission by Shincheonji is causing disruption to the quarantine front, strong and swift compulsory investigation and data collection are urgently needed."

In particular, he criticized, "Shincheonji has so far maintained an appearance of cooperation while actually obstructing quarantine through data manipulation, submission of false data, and false statements," and "Upon investigating the facilities in the province disclosed by Shincheonji, most were found to be false."

He further said, "Shincheonji notified the government that 20 Gyeonggi Province believers attended the Daegu rally, but confirmed cases who attended the Daegu rally were found who were not among those 20, and an additional 22 Gyeonggi believers who attended the Daegu rally were revealed through compulsory epidemiological investigation," and pointed out, "When Gyeonggi Province entered the Shincheonji headquarters for investigation, they demanded withdrawal, claiming they were negotiating with the government and would provide the list of about 1,290 attendees of the Gwacheon rally on February 16 through the government, but the compulsory investigation revealed that the actual number of attendees was as many as 9,930."

Governor Lee also claimed, "Through the compulsory investigation, 33,582 Gyeonggi believers were secured from the server, but the list given to the government a few hours later was 31,608, which is 1,974 fewer," adding, "Shincheonji argued through the Ministry of Health and Welfare that the list given to the government excluded minors but was otherwise the same data; however, minors were included in the government list, and among the 2,171 people obtained by Gyeonggi Province but not on the government list, 388 were adults, not minors."

He continued, "Regarding the difference between the Gyeonggi list and the government list, it was said that the government list was based on addresses and the Gyeonggi list was based on churches, but all on the Gyeonggi list were believers with Gyeonggi addresses," and pointed out, "There were even 197 believers in the province who were not on the Gyeonggi list but only on the government list, which can only be explained as manipulation."

Governor Lee emphasized, "Chairman Lee Man-hee is a high-risk individual for infection and required testing from 1:40 p.m. on March 2, but he refused until 9 p.m. that night. Even in this grave situation where dozens are dying and over 5,000 are infected, they remain uncooperative. Persuading them with a conciliatory attitude will not make them more cooperative," and stressed, "Rather, making them recognize that refusal or obstruction of quarantine activities is an anti-social criminal act that threatens lives and holding them accountable accordingly is the way to support quarantine administration."

He stated that both carrot and stick are needed, but if the carrot is ineffective, the stick must naturally be used, reiterating the prosecution's need for compulsory investigation.

Governor Lee said, "It is difficult to understand the prosecution's stance of delaying compulsory investigation due to some claims that it hinders quarantine or such unreasonable claims," and argued, "Compulsory investigation by quarantine authorities and compulsory investigation by investigative agencies are compatible, and both compulsory epidemiological investigation and compulsory investigation are essential for strong, swift, and accurate quarantine, and can proceed simultaneously without any problem."

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