Press Conference Statement on the Jogye Order’s Position to the Land of
Bongeunsa Temple Compulsorily Expropriated by the Government

The Jogye Order announces to the public that the Seoul Metropolitan Government and Park Junghee Administration forcefully extorted the land of 330,000 square meters belonged to Bongeunsa Temple on the pretext of moving the building of the Ministry of Commerce and Industry by threatening the Jogye Order’s Administration Headquarters in September 1970. However, for the 14 years since the incident, the government did neither build a new building for the Ministry nor use the land for the public benefit or public institutions. Only after 14 years, in 1984, the government finally used the land to build the office for the Korea Electric Power Corporation. And, 30 years later, in September 2014, the Park GeunHye Administration sold the land at the astronomical price of 10 billion to Hyundae Motor Company. 

In 2007, Bongeunsa Temple once strongly claimed for the owner’s priority rights to purchase the land according to the law, as the Korean Electric Power Corporation had to move according to the Special Law for Balanced National Development. But the request was completely ignored and the selling to Hyundai was made without a single discussion with Bongeunsa Temple in 2014.

Since the compulsory expropriation, Bongeunsa Temple has been under strict control and restriction in terms of development of the temple ground under the government’s regulation so it could neither introduce new Buddha statue nor build a single shrine.

Meanwhile, the Seoul Metropolitan Government received the allotment worth around $1 billion and conducts the process for building permission fastest ever.

The Jogye Order established the committee dedicated for the lost land with the missions of resurrecting the justice by finding the facts thoroughly around the land of 330,000 square meters, retrieving the land from the government and returning to the Bongeunsa Temple, Buddhists and general public. If the lands come back to Bongeunsa, it plans to create a beautiful and spiritual space where visitors could feel the essence and beauty of Korean Buddhist tradition, history, arts and cultures.  

Despite the several requests for meetings by the Jogye Order to the Seoul Mayor, he has continuously rejected them. Therefore, today, the Jogye Order publicly and strongly claims the Seoul Mayor to stop the procedure of permitting the land to Hyundai Motor Company at all costs and holds the Seoul major accountable for all the matters if it would not be stopped.