"Why Was the Imjingak Hall Rental Canceled?"... Shincheonji Holds Protest Rally at Gyeonggi Provincial Government Office

The Gyeonggi Tourism Organization's cancellation of the venue approval for a religious event scheduled at Paju Imjingak Peace Nuri has sparked backlash from the involved religious group.

Tens of thousands of Shincheonji followers are holding a protest rally in front of the Gyeonggi Provincial Government Office on the 15th. Photo by Shincheonji

On the 15th, Shincheonji Church of Jesus, the Temple of the Tabernacle of the Testimony (Shincheonji) held a protest rally near the Gyeonggi Provincial Government Office with about 25,000 believers in attendance. Shincheonji stated, "The Republic of Korea is a democratic country where all citizens have equal rights and freedom of religion is guaranteed by the Constitution," adding, "However, it seems that currently this Constitution is not applied to all citizens equally but selectively."

Shincheonji claimed, "On the 29th of last month, the Gyeonggi Provincial Government Office and the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization suddenly notified us of the cancellation of the venue approval citing concerns over North Korean tensions," and continued, "On the 30th of last month, not only Shincheonji's event but other events were scheduled at Peace Nuri, yet only Shincheonji was notified of cancellation, which is a biased administration and religious persecution."

Previously, the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization canceled the venue approval (dated July 22) for the Shincheonji-related event, ‘Religious Leaders Forum and Completion Ceremony,’ which was scheduled at Paju Imjingak Peace Nuri on the 29th of last month. A representative of the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization explained the reason, saying, "Since Imjingak Peace Nuri is a border area very close to North Korea and the event was expected to gather more than 30,000 people, we inevitably decided to cancel considering the recently heightened inter-Korean tensions," adding, "In particular, the event included elements such as releasing advertising balloons, drones, and fireworks, which could provoke North Korea." Gyeonggi Province designated Paju City, Gimpo City, and Yeoncheon County, where Imjingak is located, as ‘danger zones’ on the 15th of last month to preemptively block the distribution of leaflets to North Korea.

After the rally, Shincheonji formally delivered a protest letter to the Gyeonggi Provincial Government Office and plans to continue relay protests in front of the Gyeonggi Provincial Government Office and the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization until their demands are met.