The government concluded that the Unification Church no longer qualifies as a legally certified religious organization that contributes to the public interest, citing its dubious activities that caused huge and widespread damages to its followers.

These activities included “spiritual sales,” a type of psychic scam in which expensive items are sold to bring good fortune or protection, and pressuring adherents to make hefty donations.

The education ministry decided on Oct. 12 to file a petition with the Tokyo District Court for the dissolution of the group, formally known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification.

The action came a year and three months after the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who had promoted the church.

The Unification Church scandal has now reached a significant juncture.

However, many challenges and questions remain: Can followers reclaim the vast amount of money lost? Can the ruling Liberal Democratic Party clarify and sever its relationship with the church?

ACKNOWLEDGING REALITY OF DAMAGE

The Religious Corporations Law’s restrictions apply when a certified organization deviates from societal norms. They do not directly interfere with the believers’ freedom of religion.

When a group certified as a religious organization under the law is stripped of its corporate status, it becomes ineligible for special tax benefits and loses its corporate assets.

However, such a group can still exist as a voluntary religious organization. It is essential to first understand this basic principle.

Members of the Religious Corporations Council unanimously agreed with the ministry’s decision to seek a court order to disband the church.

The council acknowledged the church has engaged in illegal acts that severely harmed public welfare as well as activities that significantly deviated from its religious purposes. Under the law, such acts by a religious organization justify a court order to dissolve it.

The council’s acknowledgment, based on grim realities concerning the church’s activities, including followers’ families falling apart, paved the way for filing the petition.

The ministry exercised its “authority to question” a religious organization under the Religious Corporations Law for the first time and conducted seven rounds of inquiries to investigate allegations against the group.

The ministry also interviewed many victims. Its probe focused on collecting evidence to confirm the organization as a whole had continuously engaged in malicious acts.

In answering questions about the church at the Diet, Prime Minister Fumio Kishida cited three criteria for disbanding the group: whether it was engaged in “organized,” “malicious” and “continuous” acts.

Since the 1980s, when the Unification Church’s “reikan shoho” psychic scams became a social issue, more than 30 court rulings have ordered the church to pay compensation.

Many of the rulings acknowledged the church’s “organizational illegal actions” or its “vicarious liability.”

It is up to the judiciary to determine whether the church should be dissolved based on evidence collected by the ministry and past rulings.

The church appears intent on fighting a full-fledged legal battle to the end. The court should ensure swift and meticulous hearings on the case.

Although the hearings will be held behind closed doors, unlike those for ordinary trials, the government’s decision needs to be scrutinized.

Details of discussions held since last year within the Religious Corporations Council, however, remain undisclosed and unavailable to the public. It is vital to ensure transparency in the decision-making process to prevent this case from inhibiting other religious entities or leading to unwarranted government intervention.

The government should disclose the debate at the council in its entirety at an appropriate time.

ASSET PRESERVATION

Despite the church’s declaration in 2009 that it would comply with laws and social norms, damage claims from its activities have persisted. A group of lawyers monitoring the church’s dubious activities found 140 cases nationwide by 2021.

The church has continued using devious tactics to recruit members without revealing its identity. Such recruiting has been found illegal in various civil lawsuits.

Negotiations between the church and a group of victims have made no progress. Currently, 116 former followers and other victims are seeking about 4 billion yen ($26.7 million) in total compensation for their donations and other damages.

However, the church has denied its systematic involvement and refuses to pay any compensation.

The victims are concerned about the fate of the church’s assets, which should be used to provide financial relief to them.

If a court order for the group’s dissolution is finalized, its assets will be preserved through the process of liquidation. Victims fear the church might transfer its assets to its headquarters in South Korea before the finalization of the order, leaving no legal means to claim them.

They are seeking a special law to empower the court to manage and preserve the assets of a religious corporation facing a dissolution request.

The Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan has announced its intention to submit a bill based on this proposal to the upcoming extraordinary session of the Diet.

Nippon Ishin (Japan Innovation Party) is calling for additional provisions to the Religious Corporations Law. They would be similar to those in the company law that empower the court to issue an “administration order” to preserve a company property in response to a requested order to dissolve the company.

Drawing from its experience last year of enacting a law banning unjust acts of soliciting donations, the Diet should explore the best possible legislative response to the problem through nonpartisan talks involving both the ruling and opposition parties.

The government should also swiftly respond to the issue.

POLITICAL INACTION

One remaining question is why the government waited so long to seek a fundamental solution to the Unification Church problem. The political responsibility for overlooking the church’s dubious activities for many years is grave.

The LDP, in particular, has maintained close ties with the church for over half a century since former Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi (1896-1987) and church founder Sun Myung Moon (1920-2012) joined hands. This relationship created a deep swamp of shady dealings between the two organizations.

The Kishida administration cannot discharge its responsibilities related to the matter by simply initiating a dissolution request.

Abe effectively endorsed the church’s activities in a video message extolling the group and reportedly distributed votes controlled by the church, estimated at 100,000, among LDP candidates for national elections.

Furthermore, details of the process in which the Cultural Affairs Agency approved the group’s application for a name change in 2015, when Hakubun Shimomura served as education minister in the Abe Cabinet, remain unclear. Critics say the name change expanded the damage done by the church.

This is a serious issue that concerns the foundation of democracy.

Many of the church’s illegal or unethical practices cited as reasons for seeking the disbandment order had already existed back then.

Even so, the LDP only conducted a perfunctory survey of its members’ ties with the Unification Church based on reports from the members themselves and not on an active party investigation.

It has also not investigated dealings between the church and aides to LDP lawmakers or party members of local assemblies.

The LDP has selected its official candidates for the next Lower House election and made appointments to key government and party posts based solely on lawmakers’ declarations of cutting ties with the church.

This suggests the party does not understand the deep-rooted public mistrust concerning the church.

If the LDP feels genuine remorse for the consequences of its ties with the Unification Church, it should carry out a thorough investigation involving third parties to address public doubts and concerns.

The request for the dissolution of the religious group cannot be accepted as an end to this scandal. Kishida’s seriousness and leadership will once again be tested.

--The Asahi Shimbun, Oct. 13