Japan government mulls dissolving Unification Church following scandals and Shinzo Abe killing
- A request for it to disband could be filed with the court as soon as October, after a meeting of the government’s religious organisation council
- The move comes after an investigation of the church’s activities, which includes testimonies regarding alleged illegal donations and ‘spiritual sales’
The Japanese government is considering pursuing a court order to disband the contentious Unification Church, which has been at the centre of a political scandal since the killing of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in 2022, a government source said Sunday.
If the evidence and victims’ testimonies gathered so far are deemed adequate, a request for the group to disband could be filed with the Tokyo District Court as soon as October, following a meeting of the government’s religious organisation council, the source said.
But a dissolution remains uncertain given that some people in the government are cautious and want the evidence to be carefully reviewed before a decision is made. Concerns include that proving illegal activity occurred at an organisational level may not be possible.
If dissolved, the Unification Church would lose its status as a religious corporation and be deprived of tax benefits, although it could still operate as an entity.
The move to consider issuing a dissolution order comes after the government’s Agency for Cultural Affairs began in October 2022 investigating whether the church’s activities contravene the law on religious corporations.
As part of the investigation, the agency has conducted seven official rounds of questioning with the church since November. These inquiries have sought various reports, including those related to the church’s management and financial matters, civil cases where it has acknowledged legal responsibility and its communication records with its South Korean headquarters.
