He had been jailed many times by South Korean dictatorial regimes. Kim Jiha was originally impressed by Ilchi Lee’s work on behalf of Dangun, the original founder of Korea, and joined the organization. Ilchi Lee’s Dangun movement was bitterly opposed by the Christian Right of Korea, who deemed it idolatry. Kim Jiha broke with Ilchi Lee in 1999 after a famous press conference accusing Ilchi Lee as an immoral fraud.)