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Shincheonji affiliated church in the United States hired a lobby company.
It was to inform the US government that the Shincheonji Church was being persecuted, but the Korean Shincheonji side took a distance, saying that they did not know this.
Correspondent Kim Soo-hyung from Washington will provide more details.
<Reporter> This
is a document posted on the website of the US Department of Justice.
We have registered a contract for the appointment of a lobby company for the Shincheonji Church in San Francisco, USA
The lobbying company explained that the purpose of lobbying was to inform US officials of the persecution and excessive measures of Shincheonji Church in Korea and the United States.
He also wrote that he would encourage the US government to deal with the matter appropriately.
Founded by a former US House of Representatives politician, this lobbying company is located near the US Congress Building in Washington, DC.
Specializes in lobbying for foreign governments and organizations against Congress and the federal government.
The appointment fee was set to give 8,500 dollars a month and about 10 million won of our money per month, and it was concluded on the 17th of last month for 6 months, and after that, an additional 6 months could be extended by mutual agreement.
General Chairman Lee Man-hee, who is in custody, and Shincheonji, apologized to the public on the 3rd in a closed court, similar to the press conference in March.
[Manhee Lee/President Shincheonji (March 2nd): I don't know what to apologize for.
At the same time, I am grateful and ask the government for forgiveness.]
Shincheonji argued that the Shincheonji Church in the United States hired a lobbying company without consulting with the Korean headquarters, and that the explanation of the lobbying company that blamed the Korean government's oppression was not true.
(Video coverage: Jeongsik Oh, video editing: Jinhoon Park)