Petition: EU scholars call for an alternative to pre-trial detention for 95-year-old Chairman Lee

This initiative was taken at the conclusion of a press conference organised by Human Rights Without Frontiers (HRWF) on 7 August at the Seoul Foreign Correspondents’ Club in the Korean Press Building, HRWF Associate Director Hans Noot read aloud a petition addressed to the Government of the Republic of Korea before an audience of press correspondents from Korea and abroad.

The petition calls on the Korean authorities to ensure that he can stand trial without remaining in custody and points to house arrest as an alternative that is used in comparable cases involving elderly defendants accused of non-violent offences.

Following the reading, Hans Noot signed the document publicly. The other scholars and human rights advocates present—Prof. Massimo Introvigne, Thierry Valle, Michael Langhans, and Dr. Márk Nemes—then also signed the petition. The signatories placed the document in an envelope and proceeded to the headquarters of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) in central Seoul, where it was formally handed to a representative at the reception desk.

The press conference, held on 7 August at the Seoul Foreign Correspondents’ Club, brought together representatives of Human Rights Without Frontiers (HRWF), the Coordination des Associations et Particuliers pour la Liberté de Conscience (CAP Liberté de Conscience, CAP-LC), the Forum for Religious Freedom Europe (FOREF), the Center for Studies on New Religions (CESNUR), and Bitter Winter.

Statement to the Government of the Republic of Korea

“We, scholars and human rights activists from various European countries, respectfully submit this statement after visiting and meeting with Chairman Lee Man-hee and related officials on August 6, during which three of us met the Chairman at his place of detention. As academics, we have studied Shincheonji for many years: one of us has repeatedly interviewed Chairman Lee and authored what are widely regarded as the standard scholarly accounts of the movement; others have produced monographic studies on its international missionary development in several countries.

We hold the deepest respect for the democratic institutions of the Republic of Korea and have no desire to interfere with the functioning of its justice system. We note, however, that the case against Chairman Lee unfolds in a climate where media representations of Shincheonji as a “cult” often rely on polemical accounts by religious opponents who denounce it as “heresy,” while disregarding the findings of academic research.

We also observe that Korean legislation concerning the political participation of clergy is among the most restrictive in the world and may be difficult to reconcile with international norms affirming the right of believers to take part in political life. In several democratic countries, political parties inspired by religious organizations exist, and the United States is presently considering the removal of provisions limiting clergy from endorsing candidates.

Chairman Lee is ninety-five years old. In the European Union, from which we come, pre-trial detention for older defendants is considered an exceptional measure, permitted only when violent crimes are alleged—which is not the case here. In comparable situations, defendants are placed under house arrest. This approach is consistent with the Mandela Rules and other United Nations standards.

For humanitarian reasons, and in accordance with international principles protecting older defendants, we respectfully request the immediate release of Chairman Lee from custody, so that he may stand trial without being held in detention.”

Signatories

• Hans Noot, Associate Director, Human Rights Without Frontiers
• Prof. Massimo Introvigne, Managing Director and Editor-in-Chief, CESNUR and Bitter Winter
• Thierry Valle, President, CAP Liberté de Conscience
• Michael Langhans, Executive Director, FOREF Germany
• Dr. Márk Nemes, Deputy Director, CESNUR

A Humanitarian and Due-Process Appeal

The petition does not ask the Republic of Korea to prejudge the criminal proceedings or interfere with judicial independence. Rather, it asks that the proceedings be conducted in a manner consistent with the humanitarian considerations that arise when a defendant is 95 years old and accused of non-violent acts.

The appeal’s central point is straightforward: pre-trial detention should not become a punishment before a court has rendered a final judgment. In the petition’s wording, alternatives such as house arrest should be considered where they can allow the accused person to participate in legal proceedings while safeguarding dignity, health, and the presumption of innocence. By delivering the petition directly to the National Human Rights Commission of Korea, the European scholars sought to place this concern formally before Korea’s national human rights institution and to underscore the international relevance of the case.