PM lowers bar for Japan goverment to seek Unification Church disband order
Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida lowered the bar for the Unification Church to be issued a dissolution order Wednesday, saying the government could request a court consider it if the controversial religious group is found to have violated civil law.
Kishida retracted remarks from a day earlier in which he said the government could request an order to dissolve the church only if an investigation determines it has engaged in acts that breach criminal law.
At a parliamentary session on Wednesday, Kishida said his administration decided on the new interpretation after taking into account recent court rulings involving the Unification Church and the experiences of those who claim to be victims of the group.
Kishida further clarified conditions under which the government could call on a court to issue a dissolution order, but an opposition lawmaker lambasted him for his policy about-face, saying it achieves nothing.
Since the religious organization was cast into the public eye as a result of the murder of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe by the son of a follower, its dubious practices have been put on display. It has been accused of soliciting financially ruinous donations from members and engaging in “spiritual sales,” in which it pressures people to purchase jars and other items for exorbitant prices by using threats.
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party’s ties to the church have also been heavily scrutinized, and the government said Monday it will probe the group based on the “right to question” under the Religious Corporations Law.
While the government has yet to cement the details on how to proceed with the investigation, Kishida stressed the government will take a “case-by-case” approach in its decision to request a court to issue a dissolution order.
The prime minister also said the government could initiate the process to request a dissolution order, even if criminal cases involving members of the organization are still in the courts.
Kishida had been originally reluctant to launch a probe into the Unification Church partly out of fears it may violate the principle of freedom of religion.
Earlier this week, however, Kishida said he decided to direct an investigation into the Unification Church to begin, given that in less than a month the government had received more than 1,700 telephone consultations from followers and others complaining about its conduct.
Depending on the outcome of the probe and the ruling of a court, the group, founded by a staunch anti-communist in South Korea in 1954, could lose its status as a religious corporation and be deprived of tax benefits, although it would still be able to operate in Japan.
Abe’s murder in early July at the hands of Tetsuya Yamagami, who claims his mother was allegedly taken advantage of by the church that is now formerly known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, brought attention to the church’s practices.
Yamagami says his family was financially ruined after his mother made huge donations, leading him to target Abe as he was aware that the country’s longest-serving prime minister had links to the group.
Abe appeared in a video message aired at an event held by an organization affiliated with the group in 2021.