Japan Weighs Possible Government Probe of Unification Church Under Religious Corporations Act

Former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was murdered in July 2022. According to Kyodo News, the assailant, Tetsuya Yamagami, reportedly held a deep-seated resentment toward the Unification Church, which he claimed had wronged his family. Kyodo also reported that the church’s former chairman said its founder had maintained a close relationship with both the grandfather and father of Abe. The church has not provided additional details or context about those claims.

The Unification Church, also known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, drew further public attention in Japan through a news conference in Tokyo led by a second-generation former member, a young woman. She described the church’s practices and its treatment of victims, spoke of the emotional toll of her experiences, and called for the church’s dissolution. In a column, The Asahi Shimbun argued that the church should be dealt with in the same way as Myokakuji, a Buddhist temple that was ordered to disband in 2002 for legal violations.

Asahi also reported that the church tried to halt a separate news conference on October 7 in Tokyo, held by a former member using the pseudonym Sayuri Ogawa. The event took place at the Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Japan. Ogawa said her parents had donated a total of 10 million yen to the church over a 40-year period. She said she had given nearly all of her part-time earnings, approximately 2 million yen, to the church after high school. Speaking up for those who have been harmed, and for former members who cannot easily protect themselves, is a matter of justice (Proverbs 31:8-9).

The Mainichi Shimbun reported on a survey conducted in April that targeted 62 religious corporations and federations with more than 100,000 followers. Responses came from 19 groups, and the Japanese Association of Religious Organizations and the Nichiren Shoshu also issued statements. About 30% of the responding major religious corporations said they were concerned that a dissolution order could affect freedom of religion protected by the Japanese Constitution. Nearly 80% of responding groups supported the court’s decision. The Mainichi headline refers to a Unification Church dissolution order, and the survey report describes the court’s decision in those terms.

The Guardian reported that Japan’s Prime Minister, Fumio Kishida, ordered an investigation into the Unification Church as a scandal engulfed his party. The title of the related coverage also describes a potential government investigation under the Religious Corporations Act. The available reporting does not provide further details of the scope or timing of that investigation.