The detention of 95-year-old Lee Man-hee, Chairman of Shincheonji Church, has drawn sharp criticism from European scholars of religion, who are calling on South Korean authorities to release him immediately. 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 specific political party. Shincheonji Church maintains that members freely participated in political activities and that both Lee and the church have cooperated fully with investigators. The church also expressed regret that detaining a 95-year-old man amounts to a form of 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 should only exceptionally 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 to this elderly religious leader is in violation of international law, including the United Nations' Mandela Rules, which stipulate that preliminary detention should generally not be applied to elderly prisoners. This is an unmitigated scandal, which hides a political and religious vendetta."
Eric Roux, President of the European Interreligious Forum for Religious Freedom (EIFRF), echoed these sentiments: "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 South Korea's reputation. Please, get that man out of jail and do it now."
Human rights lawyer Alessandro Amicarelli, who practices in England and Italy, expressed shock: "As a human rights lawyer, I always considered South Korea a true democracy where human rights are upheld as a foundation. 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. I'm very happy to support Shincheonji in its fight against abuse and persecution."
The detention has also been raised at the United Nations. On May 25, 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 UN Human Rights Council (document No. A/HRC/62/NGO/236, circulated June 10). The statement assessed that the situation has intensified in South Korea and argued that framing members' political party registration as evidence of religion-politics collusion is inconsistent with the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, which guarantees every citizen the right to participate in political life. The organizations noted that in December 2025, the President ordered a joint police-prosecutor task force explicitly targeting Shincheonji, and senior officials have publicly called it a "criminal organization," which is incompatible with the presumption of innocence. They urged the South Korean government to reaffirm its commitment to freedom of religion, non-discrimination, and state neutrality.
Shincheonji Church stated that as support and petitions from prominent international figures grow, pressure on the South Korean government and judiciary is mounting. "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.
