European Scholars Condemn Detention of 95-Year-Old Religious Leader as Violation of International Law

The detention of Lee Man-hee, the 95-year-old Chairman of Shincheonji Church, has drawn sharp criticism from European scholars of religion and human rights experts, who describe it as a violation of international law and a threat to South Korea's democratic standing. Lee was detained on June 24 on charges including violations of the Political Parties Act and indicted on June 29. The Joint Police–Prosecution Investigation Headquarters 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 responded by stating that individual members freely participated in political activities and that both Chairman Lee and the church have fully cooperated with the investigation. The church expressed deep regret, emphasizing that detaining an elderly man of 95 amounts to physical punishment.

At the Ninth Annual Conference of the European Academy of Religion (EuARe) held in Rome on July 3, scholars addressed the situation. Dr. Massimo Introvigne, sociologist of religion and Founder of the Center for Studies on New Religions (CESNUR), stated: "In all European Union countries, legislation mandates that those older than 80 only exceptionally should be put in jail; they should be under house arrest if needed, and only for violent crimes. Here, there are no blood crimes, and the accusations are violations of electoral law. What Korea is doing is in violation of international law, including the United Nations' Mandela Rules, which mandate that preliminary detention should be exceptional." He called the situation "an unmitigated scandal" that hides a political and religious vendetta.

Eric Roux, President of the European Interreligious Forum for Religious Freedom (EIFRF), echoed these concerns: "A man of 95 years old being put in jail is not something you can reconcile with the objective of respecting human dignity. Even if what you pretend he has done is true, you would not put a man of this age in prison. I would suggest this be reviewed very fast to avoid something detrimental to the reputation of South Korea."

Human rights lawyer Alessandro Amicarelli, Chairman of the European Federation for Freedom of Belief (FOB), expressed shock: "As a human rights lawyer, I always considered South Korea a true democracy where human rights are upheld. Unfortunately, what's happening now is truly shocking. We cannot accept that a religious leader in a democratic country, at the age of 95, has to be under this kind of pressure. It looks like South Korea is departing from its own Constitution and human rights foundation."

The issue has been raised at the United Nations Human Rights Council. United for Human Rights and Coordination des Associations et des Particuliers pour la Liberté de Conscience (CAP-LC) submitted a joint statement on May 25 (Document No. A/HRC/62/NGO/236) noting that the situation has intensified and that framing members' political party registration as evidence of religion–politics collusion is inconsistent with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The statement also criticized the creation of a joint police–prosecutor task force explicitly targeting Shincheonji and public references to the church as a "criminal organization," which violate the presumption of innocence.

Shincheonji Church noted that international support for Chairman Lee is growing, increasing pressure on the South Korean government and judiciary. The church stressed that "the prompt release of Chairman Lee is a matter of safeguarding freedom of religion and human rights, which are core values of democracy."