Jin Joong-kwon on Eunhyeui Gang Church Incident: "All Responsibility Placed on Church... Governor Also Responsible"

Former Dongyang University Professor Jin Joong-kwon. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Yeon-ju] Former Dongyang University professor Jin Joong-kwon pointed out on the 17th that the mass outbreak of COVID-19 cases at the 'Eunhyeui Gang' Church in Seongnam was a "clear failure of quarantine measures."

On the same day, Jin posted on his Facebook, saying, "It is necessary to check whether any public officials dispatched from Gyeonggi Province, Seongnam City, district offices, or community centers were present at the scene where saltwater was sprayed into mouths at the church."

He added, "One thing is certain: the safety guidelines for quarantine were not properly communicated to individual churches," and said, "This accident happened because the church relied only on superstitions circulating on the internet and conducted self-quarantine. Instead of thinking about closing the church doors, supervision should have been carried out to ensure that worship services were conducted safely."

He continued, "If the church doors are closed, the public will cheer," and said, "The biggest problem with populists is that they exploit issues as opportunities to spread their political agendas rather than genuinely solving the problems."

He then targeted Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung, saying, "Responsibility is being placed solely on the church. The church has responsibilities to bear, and the governor has separate responsibilities. If there are gaps in quarantine, the quarantine system should be inspected, but it seems there is little intention to do so."

Professor Jin argued, "Whether the church followed safety guidelines should be checked in advance, not afterward," and said, "If that had been done, the 'Eunhyeui Gang' church incident would not have occurred."

He emphasized, "I oppose closing the doors of all churches that insist on holding worship services. However, no one would oppose banning individual churches from holding dangerous gatherings that refuse to follow quarantine authorities' guidelines or instructions," and stressed, "It must first be revealed whether there was a quarantine officer at the scene and whether there was prior administrative guidance for safe worship directed at the church."

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