The Shincheonji Church of Jesus, a South Korean religious group at the center of the surge of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) diagnoses in the country, has donated 12 billion won ($10.1 million) to the national fight against the outbreak, media reported on Thursday
SEOUL (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 05th March, 2020) The Shincheonji Church of Jesus, a South Korean religious group at the center of the surge of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) diagnoses in the country, has donated 12 billion won ($10.1 million) to the national fight against the outbreak, media reported on Thursday.
The donation comes amid attempts to hold the church's executives responsible for the rapid spread of COVID-19 in the country. A 61-year-old female parishioner believed to be the disease carrier who infected hundreds the southeastern city of Daegu long kept refusing to be tested for the virus. Before being finally hospitalized, she continued attending church and contacting others. Earlier in the week, the sect's founder apologized for the situation and pledged to fully cooperate with the government to counter the outbreak.
According to the Yonhap news agency, the money was donated to the Community Chest of Korea, a government-sanctioned charity, with 10 billion won allocated by the religious group's branch in Daegu and 2 billion donated by the Shincheonji headquarters.
"We do feel responsibility for the massive number of infections of the virus and do our best to support the government-led disease-control measures with all our resources. We pray for the quick stabilization of the situation and the recovery of all patients," the church said, as quoted by the media outlet.
As of Thursday, the number of COVID-19 cases in South Korea has risen by 438 to 5,766, with Daegu containing most of the new infections.
