I am an editorial writer at The Korea Times, focusing on foreign policy, North Korea and domestic politics. My key areas of interest include North Korea, foreign interference in elections, election integrity, cyberattacks and human rights. Prior to joining the Editorial Board, I served as both Politics Desk editor and Culture Desk editor. During my career, I have reported on the Presidential Office under the Lee Myung-bak administration, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Assembly.
Protestant Church lashes out at PM for 'religious discrimination'
Rev. Kim Tae-young, president of the United Christian Churches of Korea (UCCK), speaks during a news conference in the Christian Church of Korea building in central Seoul, Tuesday. The UCCK leader urged the government to scrap “discriminative” COVID-19 measures. / Yonhap
By Kang Hyun-kyung
UCCK leader urges gov't to scrap ban of small gatherings
By Kang Hyun-kyung
Protestant Church leaders slammed the government for banning any small church gatherings, other than Sunday worship, to fight the COVID-19 pandemic, claiming it constitutes religious discrimination.
“I felt angry and humiliated while watching the government's announcement (on TV) that it would ban any small gatherings in church,” Rev. Kim Tae-young, president of the United Christian Churches of Korea (UCCK), said during a news conference at a conference room of Christian Churches of Korea building in Seoul, Tuesday. “Without even trying to reach out to churches for communication, they went ahead with the announcement. Over the past week, I have struggled to figure out why they did that.”
The UCCK leader criticized the government for “discriminative measures,” a day after he and other church leaders met Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun to discuss anti-COVID-19 measures.
Commenting on their conversation, Kim said progress was made but the face-to-face meeting was not enough to assure him and other church leaders that the government's decision made sense.
“Prime Minister Chung promised to strengthen communication with the churches, which we think is positive,” he said. “But the dialogue with the prime minister itself was not enough to make us feel better.”
Presiding over a meeting of the Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasures Headquarters, Friday, Prime Minister Chung said any types of small groups inside churches, other than Sunday worship services, would be banned from July 10. The tough measure came as infection clusters continue and show no signs of abating.
Chung's remarks caused the ire of Protestant Church leaders. They claimed banning small group gatherings in churches constitutes discrimination against the Protestant Church because the government pinpointed it only, while not mentioning any other religious groups, such as Buddhists or Catholics.
The UCCK said the July 10 measure is the tip of the iceberg.
“Every Sunday, people get text messages urging them not to go to church. This text is sent indiscriminately to everybody regardless of their religious affiliation. The government is interfering with Sunday worship and this must be stopped,” it said in a statement.
The UCCK said some local governments also implemented discriminatory measures, mentioning Guri local government's announcement that those who report churches violating the government's anti-COVID-19 measures to the city will receive a financial reward. It claimed other municipal governments, such as Seongnam, have also overreacted against Protestant churches.
The UCCK urged the central and local governments to stop such “repressive measures,” otherwise they would take legal action against them.
The Protestant Church also urged Prime Minister Chung to scrap the ban on small religious gatherings. “We'll see how the government reacts to our requests this weekend. If no measures are taken by then, we will take the necessary legal measures,” Rev. Kim warned.