In the wake of the 2022 assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (formerly known as the Unification Church) was embroiled in a 'large donation controversy,' leading a Japanese court to order its dissolution.
According to Kyodo News and Agence France-Presse, the Tokyo District Court accepted the request for dissolution of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification made by the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology on the 25th. The Family Federation for World Peace and Unification can appeal the ruling.
The Japanese Religious Corporations Act stipulates that if a religious organization is clearly recognized to have engaged in acts that significantly harm public welfare by violating laws or significantly deviating from its religious purposes, the court can issue a dissolution order. Once the dissolution order is finalized, the religious corporation cannot receive tax benefits. However, it may continue to exist as a voluntary religious organization, and religious activities are not prohibited.
After the perpetrator who murdered former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in July 2022 revealed that his 'mother donated a large amount to the Unification Church, ruining the family,' the Japanese government investigated and submitted a request for a dissolution order to the court in light of the issues surrounding large donations by the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification.
Earlier this month, the Supreme Court of Japan imposed fines on the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification for refusing to answer some questions in the investigation conducted by the Japanese government based on the Religious Corporations Act and determined that civil law offenses are also included as grounds for a dissolution order. This is the first time a dissolution order has been issued based on civil law offenses against the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification.
In Japan, the only religious corporations that have had dissolution orders confirmed due to violations of laws are two groups, including the Aum Shinrikyo, which caused the sarin gas attack in Tokyo subway stations in March 1995. However, these groups were involved in criminal cases concerning sect leaders.