Conservative Christian churches in South Korea are facing a backlash from public figures for defying government orders aimed at preventing the spread of coronavirus infections.
At least a third of the 4,500 Covid-19 cases confirmed in the greater Seoul area over the past three weeks have been traced to those who attended an anti-government rally on August 15, the country’s largest cluster in months.
Some 650 church members and 7,700 protesters avoided or refused testing as of Tuesday, according to authorities. They say more than 300 congregations breached a ban on in-person gatherings.
The Sarang Jeil Church, which was at the center of the latest outbreak, and other churches were criticized by mainstream Christian figures and conservative opposition lawmakers for spreading fake news and depleting public resources.
“Those radical groups are different from us,” said Joo Ho-young, who leads the main opposition People Power Party.
Church members are insisting they never intended to disrupt government efforts to contain the outbreak. The churches’ movement is led by Rev. Jun Kwang-hoon, the Sarang Jeil founder and an outspoken critic of the government.
On Monday, Jun was re-imprisoned for attending the August 15 rally since it violated his bail in April from an indictment earlier this year for breaking election laws.
Many people that officially attend other churches have supported Jun. There are more than 4,000 of these “wilderness believers,” said Park Yoon-sik, a senior Sarang Jeil member.
Jun claims his church was being scapegoated for political reasons. “The Republic of Korea is degenerating into a totalitarian country,” he said.
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