95-Year-Old Religious Leader's Imprisonment Draws International Alarm

On 24 June, Chairman Lee Man-hee, 95, was taken into custody on political party charges involving no violence, which has drawn commentary regarding the treatment of elderly detainees. Investigators allege that between July 2021 and January 2024, Lee organised the enrolment of roughly 50,000 members into a political party, in an effort to influence the party's presidential and parliamentary primaries. This has caused many Human Rights experts around the globe to comment on whether this is in accordance to preservation of human life.

An Italian sociologist has raised questions over the detention and prosecution of Chairman Lee Man-hee, the 95-year-old leader, addressing the case in two articles published in the outlet Bitter Winter: the first on 24 June 2026, and a second on 2 July 2026, commenting on Minister Jeong's public remarks. In Introvigne's assessment, the detention is "inconsistent with international standards." Chairman Lee was taken into custody on 24 June 2026 on charges including violation of the Political Parties Act and was formally indicted while still in detention on 30 June 2026.

Dr Introvigne argued the case raises questions under the UN Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners (the "Mandela Rules") regarding proportionality in the detention of elderly individuals, referencing also the principles articulated by the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.

Introvigne also drew a parallel with a separate case involving Han Hak-ja, 83, leader of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, who has also been held in detention — though he noted the two cases differ in their specific legal grounds. Immediately after the detention, Shincheonji Church of Jesus responded that “Chairman Lee and the church have fully cooperated with every stage of the investigation, including the search and seizure operations,” calling the detention “in effect a physical punishment imposed on a 95-year-old suspect.” What Dr Introvigne highlighted was the timing of Minister Jeong's statement. Jeong made his public call for "strict criminal punishment" on the very day Chairman Lee was formally indicted while in detention. Introvigne noted that when the official who oversees the justice and prosecution system publicly declares the need for punishment just as a case is beginning, it risks being seen as prejudging the outcome and becoming a matter of human rights. Because a sitting Minister of Justice's public statements are likely to be read as more than personal opinion, effectively as the government's official position, he argued that such remarks warrant far greater caution.

The question at the heart of the case is not that members joined a political party, but whether they were coerced into doing so. Prosecutors say the evidence points to an organised, forced-enrolment campaign, while Shincheonji Church of Jesus maintains that members were not compelled by force or directive.

Dr Introvigne predicted that the trial will hinge on what evidence and legal reasoning are used to prove coercion. He argued that "these charges risk criminalising ordinary civic participation simply because the individuals belong to a religious minority," adding that "Shincheonji members, like any other South Korean citizens, have the right to join a political party and support a candidate."

Dr Introvigne said the case is being closely watched in international human rights circles not simply as a question of guilt or innocence for one religious group, but as a test of "whether a democratic state applies the same standards of rule of law and human rights to religious groups that are controversial or classified as minorities."