'Religious Freedom' Shouted in Frankfurt, Germany, in Protest Against Religious Persecution in Korea
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The wave of anti-religious persecution rallies by Shincheonji Church of Jesus in the Republic of Korea has spread overseas to Germany.
The rally began - and continued thereafter - outside the Gyeonggi Provincial Government and Gyeonggi Tourism Organization in Suwon City, Gyeonggi Province on the 15th November, with a 30,000-strong attendance by members of Shincheonji Church of Jesus and leaders of other religions expressing outrage that the freedom of religion specified in the Constitution of the Republic of Korea is being shaken by the biased decisions of administrative agencies.
Previously, Shincheonji Church of Jesus had secured approval - and made full payment - for the rental of the Imjingak Pyeonghwa Nuri Park in Paju on the 29th and 30th of October to hold the international event 'Religious Leaders' Forum and Graduation Ceremony for Peace, Freedom, and Unification'. However, on the day of the rental, Gyeonggi Provincial Governor Dong-yeon Kim and Gyeonggi Tourism Organization unilaterally cancelled the event, even though the Organization had stated until the day before that there were "no plans to cancel." Despite months of preparations, the event, which was scheduled to welcome 30,000 attendees from 78 countries, was cancelled last minute under alleged pressure from vested religious groups.
In order to inform citizens of Shincheonji Church of Jesus’ ongoing stance on the Gyeonggi Tourism Organization’s cancellation of its rental, the Frankfurt Church of Shincheonji Church of Jesus (hereafter referred to as Shincheonji Frankfurt Church) held a large-scale rally calling for religious freedom at the heart of Frankfurt, Germany, on November 30th.
On that day, about 200 believers from the Shincheonji Frankfurt Church participated in the rally, and raised their voices calling for international criticism of religious oppression and the guarantee of freedom.
The event began with a proposal from an Indian citizen who has a keen interest in human rights issues.
In his speech, he emphasised, “Even in the 21st century, the cancellation of public facility rentals due to a specific religion is a clear example of a violation of human rights,” and “Freedom of religion as stated in Article 18 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights must be protected.”
At the site, a signature campaign was conducted targeting citizens, and a consensus was formed through street performances and free speech. In particular, passersby showed great interest in the message of 'human rights violation' and actively participated in signing the petition.
Meanwhile, the Shincheonji Frankfurt Church has begun a full-fledged petition campaign calling for government and international organisation-level responses to protect religious freedom in Europe.
Source: vo.la/HYGpLc
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