'I Am God' PD, "The Law Is Never Absolutely on the Victim's Side"

PD Seonghyun Jo Posts on JMS Ex-Members Cafe on Myungsuk Jeong's Birthday
"I Was Thoroughly a Victim While Investigating a Cult Religion"

Producer Jo Seong-hyun, who created the Netflix documentary 'I Am a God: People Betrayed by God' (hereinafter 'I Am a God'), which exposed the atrocities of a cult, posted a message on the JMS (Christian Gospel Mission) ex-members' cafe on the birthday of JMS leader Jeong Myeong-seok, stating, "Things are happening now that we couldn't have imagined last year."

Producer Seonghyun Jo, who directed the Netflix documentary "I Am God."
[Photo by Yonhap News]

On the 16th, Producer Jo posted a message titled "Congratulations on 316" on the online cafe 'Canaan,' where JMS ex-members gather. JMS has called this day, Jeong Myeong-seok's birthday, the "316 Rapture Memorial Day" and has held grand events every year.

Producer Jo opened by saying, "When I posted on the 3rd, I thought it would be my first and last post, but now that it is 316, many emotions have arisen, and I cannot help but write." He continued, "The moment on March 16 last year, Jeong Myeong-seok's birthday, which JMS calls the Saint Ascension Day, when Maple and I were heading to the press conference, is still vivid in my mind. Due to stress, Maple was complaining of severe stomach pain from the morning, so I suggested canceling the press conference. But Maple replied, 'Not even God can stop me.' It was a huge shock and even made me feel respect," recalling the time.

He said, "And today, one year later, things are happening that I couldn't have imagined last year," adding, "Professor Kim Do-hyung, who was called the head of Satan, suddenly transformed into a righteous person, and the second-in-command Jeong Jo-eun even admitted Jeong Myeong-seok's criminal acts. It is an ending I never imagined."

Producer Jo also said, "One thing I desperately felt while investigating cults is that the law is never on the side of the victims." He stated, "It was the South Korean courts that sentenced Jeong Myeong-seok to 10 years in prison, who would have received a life sentence in the U.S., and also acquitted him in the Agadongsan death case. Everyone has the right to legal counsel, but I don't know if the law firm Gwangjang had to defend Jeong Myeong-seok, or if lawyers from Minbyun (Lawyers for a Democratic Society) had to defend Kim Ki-soon of Agadongsan from the past to the recent injunction case," expressing his opinion.

He added, "I just feel that money has the power to erase political orientations and sensitivity to human rights," and revealed a shocking anecdote: "There was even a case where a lawyer, known as a devout Christian and former police chief, tracked the filming crew's location and helped Jeong Myeong-seok escape to the police fitness room to avoid the cameras."

Producer Jo confessed that during his investigation, he was sued by a religious group and said, "Although I am a terrestrial PD without a grand title and never considered myself weak, while investigating cults, I could not put aside the thought that 'I am thoroughly the weak one.'"

Nevertheless, Producer Jo encouraged JMS ex-members, saying, "316 is no longer Saint Ascension Day. It is the day you saved yourselves, whom even the law did not protect. You should be proud of yourselves." Finally, he concluded his message by saying, "'I Am a God' has been released for 13 days now, and I will proudly cherish the fact that this small documentary has become a spark for such a great change throughout my life."

'I Am a God,' released on Netflix on the 3rd, is an eight-episode documentary covering four individuals who call themselves gods: Jeong Myeong-seok, Park Soon-ja, Kim Ki-soon, and Lee Jae-rok. It became the first documentary to rank number one among popular domestic content on Netflix.