Editing Shincheonji Church of Jesus (section)

===Privacy concerns===
On February 24, 2020, the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency requested a list of all Shincheonji congregants. The list included congregants’ name, citizen registration number, address, name of place of employment, and family member information. A day after, Shincheonji submitted the list of all congregants and complied with the government's request. 
<ref name="Contention">{{cite news|url=https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20201021173200061|title=Shincheonji requested to include members' citizen registration numbers in list of congregants… Contention over whether or not this is part of epidemiological investigation |first=Young Hoon|last=Kang|date=21 October 2020|work=[[Yonhap News Agency]]}}</ref>

There was no deadline listed in the official information request letter sent to Shincheonji for epidemiological investigation. The official request also did not ask for members’ citizen registration numbers. Despite this, officials from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency requested members’ citizen registration numbers to be included in the data.<ref name="Sarang">{{cite news|url=https://mnews.sarangbang.com/detail/article/2455967|title="There was no request to submit Shincheonji citizen registration numbers…" |first=Jong-Dae|last=Park|date=21 October 2020|work=Sarang Bang News}}</ref>

There was a day's delay in submitting information, however, as Shincheonji officials asked the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency about the legality of providing congregants’ citizen registration numbers and if the government will protect the congregants’ private information.<ref name="Sarang" />

On February 25, 2020, Shincheonji officials provided the list of requested information for all of its congregants.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.com/korean/news-51624633 |title=COVID-19: 60 New Cases Reported, Total Confirmed Cases Rise to 893, Shincheonji to Provide Full List |access-date=13 June 2024 |date=25 February 2020 |work=BBC News Korea }}</ref>

In the October 2020 trial of Chairman Lee Man-Hee, where he is accused of not complying with epidemiological investigations, an official from the Korea Ministry of Health and Welfare acknowledged that Shincheonji officials made effort to provide the requested congregants’ information. The conversation records between Shincheonji officials and the Agency official show an expression of concern over privacy, not a refusal to provide information or a refusal to cooperate.<ref name="Sarang" />

Chairman Lee's counsel argued that the request for congregants’ citizen registration numbers had nothing to do with epidemiological investigation.<ref name="Contention" />

In the initial discussion between representatives of Shincheonji and the [[Blue House]], the Blue House official in charge of the case was made aware of Shincheonji's concerns for congregants’ safety and privacy, and the omission of information from certain congregants, such as minors and those at special risk for persecution, such as elected politicians or public officials.<ref name="NoCutNov">{{cite news|url=https://www.nocutnews.co.kr/news/5440611|title=Blue House Official "Difficulties if congregation list is exposed...How will the list be revealed?" |first=Young-Min|last=Joo|date=3 November 2020|work=[[No Cut News]]}}</ref>

The police have determined that the intention for omitting certain congregants’ information was not for the purpose of obstructing disease prevention and control efforts, but to protect congregants of Shincheonji.<ref name="NoCutNov" />

In a recorded phone conversation, Chairman Lee told the Shincheonji representative in charge of communicating with the government to provide congregant information that "since the government is doing what Shincheonji should’ve done instead, we must actively help [the government]."<ref name="NoCutNov" />

[[Alex Azar]], [[United States Secretary of Health and Human Services]], described South Korea's approach to COVID-19 as something that "would likely not fly here in the United States" and referred to the South Korean government's authoritarian crackdown on Shincheonji as he described how South Korea "used their military and police powers to lock down that church, arrest everybody that was in contact with individuals in that church."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/2010/23/cnr.04.html|title='Interview with HHS Secretary Alex Azar'|date=23 October 2020|website=CNN|publisher=[[CNN]]}}</ref>