A court docket in Japan has ordered the disbandment of the controversial Unification Church, which got here beneath scrutiny after the shock killing of former prime minister Shinzo Abe in 2022.
The alleged murderer had confessed that he held a grievance against Abe due to the ex-leader’s ties with the church, extra popularly often known as the “Moonies”.
Japan’s training and tradition ministry sought the church’s dissolution and accused it of manipulating followers into making enormous donations and different monetary sacrifices.
However the church had argued that the donations it obtained have been a part of reliable spiritual actions and shouldn’t warrant its dissolution. It might probably attraction to overturn Tuesday’s ruling.
The order handed down by a Tokyo district court docket will strip the church of its tax-exempt standing and require it to liquidate its property, however it’s going to nonetheless be allowed to function in Japan.
Throughout their investigation, authorities discovered that the church coerced followers into shopping for costly gadgets by exploiting fears about their religious well-being.
They interviewed almost 200 individuals who stated they have been victimised by the church.
The Unification Church, which was began in South Korea, has established a presence in Japan for the reason that Nineteen Sixties. The title “Moonies” was derived from the title of its founder, Solar Myung Moon.
It has drawn controversy even earlier than Abe’s assassination for instructing that marriage is central to religious salvation. It’s identified for holding mass marriage ceremony ceremonies involving 1000’s of {couples}.
Since 2023, some 200 former believers who stated they have been compelled to donate to the group have demanded compensations amounting to five.7 billion yen ($38.5m) in whole, in accordance their legal professionals.
Investigations following Abe’s assassination revealed shut ties between the secretive sect and lots of conservative ruling-party lawmakers, resulting in the resignation of 4 ministers.
An inside investigation by former prime minister Fumio Kishida’s Liberal Democratic Get together discovered that 179 of its 379 lawmakers had interacted with the Unification Church.
The relationships ranged from attending church occasions to accepting donations and receiving election assist.
The revelations in regards to the extent and stage of involvement of the controversial church and the LDP shocked the nation.
