The administration of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida will be tested on how seriously it investigates the Unification Church in the days and months to come.

The religious group, now officially called the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, has faced heavy public criticism for its “spiritual sales” and donation-collection tactics.

The administration must work effectively to block similar practices and provide relief for the victims.

In a report released on Oct. 17, an expert panel under the Consumer Affairs Agency recommended the government review its policy toward the church as well as relevant laws and regulations.

Attention was focused on how far the panel would go on the subject of requesting a court order for the dissolution of the church.

A dissolution order is exclusively secular in nature, but it comes with grave consequences, particularly the removal of a group’s religious corporation status.

Caution should be exercised concerning decisions on such orders because freedom of religion must be guaranteed.

The panel’s recommendation, however, pointed out suspicions that the Unification Church, as a religious corporation, has “violated laws and regulations” and committed “acts that have clearly been found to substantially harm public welfare.” Such actions are grounds to request a dissolution order, the panel said.

The argument is partly based on several court rulings in civil lawsuits that found the church committed “organized unlawful acts.”

The panel said authorities should investigate the Unification Church by requesting reports or questioning church officials, with an eye toward a possible request for dissolution.

The panel reached the proper conclusion on the basis of available facts.

In keeping pace with the recommendation, Kishida told the Diet he will “take steps” toward a prospective investigation. Officials have said the government plans to open the probe by year-end.

The investigators should listen to expert views in carefully scrutinizing the matter, but they should also avoid wasting time.

The Cultural Affairs Agency, which oversees religious corporations, has so far taken a negative stance about requesting a dissolution order for the church, saying no officials of the group have been found guilty in a criminal case.

But the Supreme Court has never provided an interpretation that the “violation of laws and regulations,” which is grounds for a dissolution order, should be limited to breaches of the Criminal Law.

The authorities need to gather all relevant information and evidence and present convincing investigation results on the Unification Church.

The panel’s discussions have also highlighted defects in the Consumer Contract Law.

Four years ago, a provision was added to the law to give consumers the right to cancel contracts related to spiritual sales.

But the provision is inconvenient to use. It may be applied only if consumers were told that they would experience serious disadvantages unless they entered the contract.

The panel recommended wider eligibility to use the provision as well as an extended time limit for exercising the cancellation right. The provision should be revised accordingly.

The majority of financial disputes surrounding the Unification Church are now about donations.

Children and other family members of church followers have felt obliged to raise money for the organization or have been driven psychologically into a corner.

The expert panel called for discussions on legislation that would allow for the annulment of donations made to groups that disguise their identities while doing missionary work.

Legal stipulations should also be in place to ban donations from people who cannot make rational decisions or are not acting under their own free will, the panel said.

Such measures would block damage in the early stages.

But the enactment of such legislation would not give immediate relief to those who are suffering now.

The government should enhance its consultation services for victims of the Unification Church and do its utmost to provide assistance to similar individuals.

The government has a responsibility to make up for the way it has left the church problem unattended for such a long time.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Oct. 18