A scene of mass-suicide from the 1987 Odaeyang accident, involving 32 handicraft factory workers, all of whom were believers of a heathen cult Guwon. The religion is shared by more than 90 percent of employees of Chonghaejin Marine, which owns the sunken ferry Sewol.



By Ko Dong-hwan

The sunken ferry Sewol's captain and sailors arrested for dereliction of their duty of rescuing passengers were confirmed as believers of a heathen cult known as Guwon (Korean for "salvation").

KBS's "News 9" broadcasted Tuesday in an interview with a former employee of Chonghaejin Marine, a ferry transportation company which owns Sewol.

He said more than 90 percent of the company employees are Guwon believers, including the company owner Yoo Byung-eun. He added captain Lee Joon-seok had become a devout believer after he landed his job at the company.

Guwon cult's doctrine inculcates that those who were once saved by God are completely detached from the sins they will ever commit in the future and guaranteed a path to heaven.

The General Assembly of Presbyterian Church in Korea defined Guwon as a pagan branch, forcing the cult to establish their own religious foothold, The Evangelical Baptist Church.

Guwon previously made headlines in August 1987, when 32 corpses were discovered on a ceiling of a handicraft factory in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, which was a property of a company called Odaeyang. Police investigation had revealed the company was crushed with 17 billion won worth of private loans.

The victims, including its president Park Sun-ja, committed group suicide. They were all identified as believers of Guwon.