European scholars of religion and human rights advocates are urging the South Korean government to release Lee Man-hee, the 95-year-old chairman of the Shincheonji Church of Jesus, who has been detained since June 24 on charges including violations of the Political Parties Act. The detention, they argue, violates international law and undermines South Korea's democratic credentials.
Chairman Lee was indicted on June 29 by the Joint Police–Prosecution Investigation Headquarters, which alleges that between July 2021 and January 2024, he directed the mass registration of approximately 50,000 church members into a particular political party. Shincheonji Church has denied the allegations, stating that individual members freely participated in political activities and that both Chairman Lee and the church have cooperated fully with the investigation, including searches and seizures. The church expressed deep regret, noting that detaining a 95-year-old amounts to physical punishment.
The European Academy of Religion (EuARe), a non-profit academic network, addressed the issue during its Ninth Annual Conference in Rome on July 3. In a session titled "Shincheonji, a Korean New Religion in Global Context," scholars presented research on the church and discussed the recent developments in South Korea.
Dr. Massimo Introvigne, a sociologist of religion and founder of the Center for Studies on New Religions (CESNUR), commented that in all European Union countries, individuals over 80 are only exceptionally jailed, typically only for violent crimes involving bloodshed. "Here, of course, there are no blood crimes, and the accusations are violations of electoral law," he said. He added that the detention violates the United Nations' so-called Mandela Rules, which stipulate that preliminary detention should be rare and only applied to elderly prisoners in exceptional cases. "What is happening is an unmitigated scandal, which hides a political and religious vendetta," Introvigne said.
Eric Roux, president of the European Interreligious Forum for Religious Freedom (EIFRF), called the detention an injustice. "A man of 95 years old being put in jail is not something that you can reconcile with the objective of respecting human dignity," he said. Roux urged South Korea to review the case quickly to avoid damaging its reputation.
Human rights lawyer Alessandro Amicarelli, chairman of the European Federation for Freedom of Belief (FOB), expressed concern. "As a human rights lawyer, I always considered South Korea a true democracy where human rights are upheld like a foundation of the democracy. Unfortunately, what's happening now is truly shocking," he said, adding that the treatment of a 95-year-old religious leader is unacceptable in a democratic country.
The issue has also been raised at the United Nations. On May 25, international human rights organizations United for Human Rights and Coordination des Associations et des Particuliers pour la Liberté de Conscience (CAP LC) submitted a joint written statement to the 62nd session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), available at UNHRC 62nd Session. The statement noted that the situation has intensified in South Korea and argued that framing church members' political registration as "religion–politics collusion" is inconsistent with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which guarantees the right to participate in political life. The organizations also highlighted that in December 2025, the president ordered the creation of a joint police-prosecutor task force explicitly targeting Shincheonji, and that senior officials have publicly referred to the church as a "criminal organization," violating the presumption of innocence.
Shincheonji Church stated that support and petitions from the international community are growing, increasing pressure on the South Korean government and judiciary. "The prompt release of Chairman Lee is a matter of safeguarding freedom of religion and human rights, which are core values of democracy," the church said.
