The Sincheonchi organization has declared it is in cooperation with the government public health effort to contain the covid 19 epidemic. A representative of the organization deplored the hate and discrimination it said it was experiencing as a result of recent events. Yet, As of news reports a several hours ago, the Sincheonchi cult organization in Seoul was uncooperative in providing a complete list of their members in Seoul, Korea. The cult organization there was being encouraged in their resistance to lawful public health measures by the charlatan minister, Jeon Kwang-hoon, who leads the unrelated Korean Christian Conference and directed the unlawful "Taegukki" (Korean flag) demonstration in Gwanghwamun last weekend. After the imposition of a state of emergency by the national government in South Korea, warrants will be sought against the Sincheonchi organisation for the relevant information needed for epidemiological tracking. Assemblies of persons in Gwangwhamun and other large public plazas in Seoul are now declared illegal for public health reasons. A group of persons said to be representing Daegu was present at the Gwanghwamun plaza demonstration this weekend. The mayor of Seoul, Park Won-soon, confronted the entire gathered assembly personally as to the unlawful nature of the gathering in light of the public health emergency. He was booed and hissed.
In public statements on the radio, February 22, Seoul's mayor warned that police would blockade the public venues on February 29 when another Taegukki assembly led by the demogogue minister and his far right acolytes is anticipated. A confrontation is to be expected in which physical force would become a likely outcome to remove and disperse unlawful demonstrators violating the new health ban. Nominally, the Sincheonchi and Jeon Kwang-hoon are antagonistic to each other. Jeon Kwang-hoon is goading the Sincheonchi not to cooperate with the government, as well as his own followers. The mayor stated he suspected Jeon was not in his right mind.
If one views the entire situation in context, with the upcoming April 15 elections; US pressure on South Korea to cough up additional billions for defense cost sharing; the continuing thousands of far right demonstrators and Jeon himself, in Gwanghwamoon waving their US flags a stones throw from the US embassy building; the encouragement of resistance to public health measures by the religious right appears to be a concerted effort to take advantage of the public health crisis in South Korea to unseat the democratically elected administration of Moon Jae-in.
DongA.com reported this morning that Minister Jeon was arrested on grounds of violating South Korean election campaign laws.
Update Feb. 28:
Minister Jeon is the leader of the Korean Christian Council. He was arrested a few days ago for violating South Korean election campaign laws. A brief statement he made while being transported from the police station in handcuffs said the planned illegal demonstration planned for this Saturday would not place until Sunday, March 1, and would be a “worship service.” The religious leader is associated with the right wing opposition Liberty Korea Party, now reformed as the United Future Party. Hwang Kyo-ahn, the former prime minister and LKP leader has appeared as a speaker at Minister Jeon’s Taegukki weekend demonstrations. The demonstrations call for President Moon to resign or be impeached because, allegedly he is a communist symphathizer and tyrant.
Now Jeon tries to frame his illegal demonstration in violation of the emergency public health ban on assemblies in Seoul’s major public plaza’s as “religious freedom” issue. During last week’s illegal demonstration, Jeon ridiculed the Shincheonji cult for closing its churches in response to hundreds of its members being positive for corona virus. Jeon encouraged resistance to the government public health efforts.
The public defiance of government public health efforts during the health emergency is a misguided and dangerous attempt to discredit and destabilize the government ahead of the general election April 15.
Update Feb. 29:
An MBC 2 news broadcast today reported that the religious opposition movement (Pan National People's Struggle Headquarters) sometimes referred to as the Taegukki movement, organized by Minister Jeon, of the Korean Christian Council, did not demonstrate in Gwanghwamun today heeding government warnings and declining to challenge the authority of the Mayor of Seoul to enforce the health ban on public assemblies in the main public plazas of Seoul. While Minister Jeon is in jail, the alternative leader of the group, Minister Jeong Bang-un, lead a unified worship service in a church in the Sangbuk Gu neighborhood.
Hwang Kyo-ahn, the leader of the United Future Party opposition was noticeably present at the public March 1 commemoration ceremonies in a bipartisan display of patriotism with other government officials and representatives. As documented in another broadcast, Hwang had grown more circumspect in his criticism of the government response to the worsening healthcare crisis in South Korea. As the case numbers increased he became more vague and less strident in answers concerning what should be done in response to the epidemic.
Borrowing from the analysis in Barbara Tuchman's The Proud Tower, concerning the Dreyfus Affair in late 19th Century France, without a strong authoritarian leader or a meddling foreign power, a democratic country won't be upset. The "stuff of a dictator" is in jail, the putative "man on horseback" displayed the soul of a second lieutenant, and the streets of Gwanghwamun were unusually empty and quiet today.
No comments:
Post a Comment