청 "Ban on Church Events Except Worship Is Inevitable... Thanks for Cooperation from Religious Circles"

Cheongwadae Responds to National Petition
"Public Health and Safety Are the Priority"

On the afternoon of the 3rd, lawyer Kang Yeon-jae and the legal team of Sarang Jeil Church held a press conference in front of Sarang Jeil Church in Seongbuk-gu, Seoul, to announce their position regarding the police's search and seizure of church-related facilities, including Pastor Jeon Gwang-hoon's residence, the previous day.

On the 4th, the Blue House announced a virtually non-acceptance stance regarding a national petition requesting the government to cancel the 'ban on church events other than worship services' measure implemented to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19), stating that it was an inevitable measure for public safety and quarantine.

On the same day, the Blue House responded to the petition submitted in July requesting the withdrawal of strengthened quarantine measures such as the ban on events other than regular worship services at churches, saying, "It was an unavoidable measure implemented to protect the health and safety of all citizens."

Ryu Geun-hyeok, Secretary for Social Policy, responded to the petition titled 'Withdrawal of the Ban on Church Events Other Than Regular Worship Services,' which received 427,470 signatures, stating, "In early July, more than thirty confirmed cases occurred centered around some churches, leading to the unavoidable implementation of mandatory core quarantine rules for churches starting July 10." He added, "The government is maintaining vigilance and making every effort to reduce the number of confirmed cases to a manageable level."

He said, "The Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters repeatedly briefed and urged church members to refrain from high-risk activities such as small gatherings and meals," and added, "It was also communicated that if confirmed cases continued to occur through churches, it would be inevitable to designate churches as high-risk facilities and enforce core quarantine rules."

Secretary Ryu stated, "As a result, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism also requested cooperation from the religious community through intensive communication, as had been done until then," and added, "We understand that the religious community has made many efforts, such as voluntarily canceling or postponing meetings and events."

He also said, "The religious community agreed to conduct only non-face-to-face worship services at churches in the metropolitan area for the time being to ensure the safety of church members and the community," and expressed gratitude for the cooperation and efforts of the religious community.

Regarding the petitioners' opinion that the strengthened quarantine measures for churches are unfair compared to other facilities, Secretary Ryu explained, "Facilities such as clubs, karaoke rooms, and door-to-door sales are designated as high-risk facilities and all activities are strictly managed, but churches were not designated as high-risk facilities, and regular worship services could continue."

Additionally, the Blue House issued a written response on the same day to the petition titled 'Disqualification of Judge Kang Young-su as a Supreme Court Justice Nominee.'

The petitioner requested the disqualification of Judge Kang, who presided over the world's largest child sexual exploitation case 'Welcome to Video,' arguing that he is not qualified to be a Supreme Court justice nominee. This petition received 529,144 signatures.

The Blue House explained, "On July 23, 2020, the Supreme Court Justice Nomination Committee recommended Judges Bae Gi-yeol, Cheon Dae-yeop, and Lee Heung-gu as successors to Justice Kwon Soon-il, who will retire in September this year, and Judge Kang Young-su was not recommended." It added, "On August 10, 2020, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court proposed the appointment of Judge Lee Heung-gu as a Supreme Court justice to the President."

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