“Adult Male Kidnapped, Drugged, Handcuffed & Forced into a Suitcase for the Purpose of Coercive Conversion"
On 18th June 2020, Cheonji Ilbo (Daily) published an article entitled "Adult Male Kidnapped, Drugged, Handcuffed & Forced into a Suitcase for the Purpose of Coercive Conversion". This is a translation of that article.
Chronic insomnia induced by fear and betrayal
Parents treated me like an animal during forced conversion
Imprisoned for 23 days in a prayer house with barbed wired
Reported to police who arrived on scene but turned a blind eye
The once unknown term 'forced conversion' became a serious topic in Korean society in 2008 after Pastor Yong-Sik Jin sent Mrs. Baek-Hyang Jeong to a psychiatric ward in order to carry out forced conversion. He was later punished by law. At that time Pastor Jin, who headed up the Heresy Investigation Committee of the Christian Council of Korea (CCK), forcibly converted believers who belonged to denominations of the established church labelled so-called 'cults', including Mrs. Jeong’s. Such cases began to rise in leaps and bounds. At first, pastors carried out ‘forced conversion’ (also termed ‘deprogramming’ or ‘coercive conversion’) themselves, but later altered their approach. Today, forced conversion pastors instil fear and anxiety in the families of Shincheonji Church members by slandering Shincheonji Church, so that families are deceived into believing their beloved child, wife or parent has fallen into a ‘cult’ and are prone to making immediate hasty decisions. In order to prevent this, forced conversion programs tainted by illegal practices that include kidnap, confinement and violence become the 'last straw' to save the family. In 21st century South Korea, where issues around religious freedom have been brought to the limelight, ‘forced conversion’ continues unabated. This paper intends to serialise the distressing appeals of victims who have had to endure human rights violations and oppression through forced conversion, and are otherwise unable to voice their plea.
Please listen to my story in bewilderment.
As a Korean citizen, I've experienced human rights abuses that should have never happened. When I think about them now, I have great anxiety and trouble sleeping.
My parents, who are more devout than most, were deceived by the words of pastor Shin.
On the evening of August 5th 2012, I was having a meal with my parents at home.
After eating the meal, I began to lose strength and my body shook involuntarily. I felt like I was losing my mind and gradually fell asleep. When I awoke, my family tried to corner me so I resisted with all my strength, but after having eaten food drugged with sleeping pills, I was knocked out.
My family handcuffed me to prevent me from moving and bound my feet and thighs with several strands of tape. They then covered my mouth with tape to prevent me from yelling.
Then my body was forced into a large suitcase with my face, neck and shoulders sticking out.
I was carried from the 15th floor to the ground floor of the apartment building and placed in the back seat of a car.
At around 12 midnight, the vehicle within which I was abducted arrived at a secluded mountain valley in Yangpyeong county, Gyeonggi province, at a place called ‘Prayer House’.
I had travelled in the backseat of a passenger car from Daegu to Yangpyeong county, Gyeonggi province for more than four hours. I went insane, unable to gather my senses. I was moved to the first floor of the prayer house, bound with handcuffs and every window covered with barbed wire “in case you try to escape”.
I was in hell. I made every effort to engage in dialogue and then to resist, but it was pointless.
I was confined for 23 days and assaulted when I tried to escape the prayer house that was surrounded by barbed wire. I lost all my rights and was treated like a beast, even when going to the toilet as my every step was monitored.
iIt was animal-like imprisonment. A report sent by a friend to the police led the police to the prayer centre. I begged them to save me from this terrible situation, but they told me to consider my parents’ perspective. I was utterly shocked.
Fortunately, through more police reports from friends, the police came back and got me out.
I struggled to recover from the shock because of the police’s prejudices towards kidnap and assault in South Korea.
Moreover, this was not my first time as a forced conversion victim.
In May 2011, my parents who were approached by someone called Pastor Hwang Mo in Busan, inflicted all kinds of abuse on me including forced confinement, as instructed by Pastor Hwang. It caused me great pain.
Pastor Hwang convinced my parents that I was suffering from a severe psychiatric disorder and that the only way to solve my problem was taking me to a psychiatric ward. My deluded parents persisted in getting me on the coercive conversion programme, but I refused.
Then one day, at the counsel of Pastor Hwang, my father suggested that en route to helping my mum buy groceries, we stop by for a short visit at grandma's at her home. I went without hesitation or doubt.
My grandfather, aunt and visiting relatives (who had come from abroad) were all there. As soon as I sat on the sofa, they overpowered me and robbed my cell phone so that I could not move. I was a prisoner in my grandma's home. Rev. Hwang, who had advised this, appeared roughly two hours later and forced the conversion programme on me without my consent. I resisted firmly, but my family were so forceful and assaulted me.
My whole body was bruised and my heart aching.
After having lost contact with friends for a while, they sent a report to the police, and even went to my father's school to protest and complain. My Dad and pastor Hwang felt burdened by the situation so they released me on the fourth day of the programme.
As a result, although my parents and I lived in one house, mistrust grew. I was in constant anxiety that my parents would abduct me again.
In South Korea, where freedom of religion is enshrined in the Constitution, such outright violations of human rights are taking place through conversion pastors and their followers. My parents and I have been in living hell since then with no one bringing the perpetrators to justice.
My fervent appeal is that there will be no more victims whose parents, like mine, are deceived by conversion pastors.
To read the full article as published in Cheonji Daily, please click here⇨https://bit.ly/2YW3Ka7
Coercive Conversion Articles
“Kidnapped & Confined: Coercive Conversion Abuses Parents’ Love & Must Be Eliminated”
“Coercive Conversion Pastor Treated me like an Animal and Instigated Mistrust Within my Family”
Is This A Communist ‘People's Court'? The Deception of Coercive Conversion
Restrained with Sleeping Pills…Resisted Forced Conversion, but was Assaulted and Eventually Fainted
Drugged, Handcuffed, Kidnapped, Confined; it’s OK, they Belong to Shincheonji! Today’s ‘Cult Framing' that Violates Human Rights and Tears Families Apart
“Kidnapped and Confined Without Shower or Food, and Sexually Shamed”
"Family deceived and manipulated into locking up and beating pregnant family member. 'Peace' will be found when truth is revealed"
"They forced me to remove my underwear in front of relatives in a car. I'm a 30 year-old woman”
'Counselling Education'? No - 'Coercive Conversion' & Human Rights Abuses. Controversy Surrounds YTN As Its News Anchor Becomes Head Speaker at CBS' 'Shincheonji Counselling' Programme (June 25th 2020)
⇨http://noahbrown1984.blogspot.com/2020/06/counselling-education-no-coercive.html
Coercive Conversion in Present-Day South Korea: Amoral Pastors Who Deceive Parents for Money
"Mum’s Piercing Words, 'Get out of the House, you Bi*ch!' Yet Later Protested 'Bring Back my Daughter!'" (Cheonji Daily, 10th June 2020)
"It’s because of 'Shincheonji Church' Vs. 'It's Parents Who Kidnap and Confine their Children'. Who's to blame?" (Cheonji Daily, 5th June 2020)
(Cheonji Daily 2nd June 2020)
(Cheonji Daily 1st June 2020)
(Cheonji Daily 21st May 2020)
(Cheonji Daily 28th April 2020)
2 comments
I have a few comments to make, firstly it is really interesting that mere words can convince people of an idea. It makes me wonder what words have been used to twist my whole life for someone else's gain, but maybe that's just paranoia.
ReplyDeleteSecondly, a grown male in a suitcase being carried down 15 floors and no one noticed?
Thirdly, I understand it's really difficult to betray your faith, but looking at the situation a psychiatric ward is not a bad alternative. It's not a place for "crazy" people and I think it carries a heavy stigma. If healthcare professionals could do their own assessment, they would've seen that this person had full mental capacity to make rational decisions. It seems like the better option than refusal. Although the victim must have felt a serious amount of betrayal from his loved ones, just as how his parents must've felt learning he was in Shincheonji.
Thanks for your reply.
DeleteThe words that conversion pastors speak to parents instil in them fear and anxiety to the extent that the parent believes their child has truly joined a cult and is prone to making hasty decisions that will destroy their own lives and tear the family unit apart. Added to this is the stigma that the mere name 'Shincheonji' carries, resulting from years of slander by the mainstream Protestant church with their vested interest in power and authority, and affiliated media agencies and politicians.
Moreover, conversion pastors who oppose Shincheonji Church think the psychiatric ward is for "crazy" people, which is why they forcefully place its church members there. Conversion pastors who force Shincheonji Church members into a ward do so out of hatred. The truth is we are neither fanatics, nor a cult nor psychotic. We believe in the same word of God as other Christians do. Nurses and doctors are often bribed or deceived by conversion pastors. The main issue is that conversion pastors and victims' families attempt to resolve religious disagreement through force, instead of open dialogue based on the Bible.
I hope that helps.