A Japanese court on Tuesday fined the Unification Church with a 100,000 yen penalty for refusing to respond to the government's inquiry into its alleged illegal donation solicitations.
Upholding a lower court decision, the Tokyo High Court rejected the controversial religious organization's appeal. The group has come under renewed public scrutiny after former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was fatally shot in July 2022 during an election stump speech over his perceived links to the church.
In March, the Tokyo District Court imposed a fine on Tomihiro Tanaka, head of the church's Japan branch, saying the organization had refused to cooperate with the government, which had a right to question and obtain documents from it.
The church is a South Korean religious organization established by a staunch anti-communist in 1954. In Japan, the church has long been criticized for extracting huge donations from followers via "spiritual sales," in which victims are pressured to buy items at exorbitant prices.
The government has sought to question the Japanese branch so an application can be filed seeking a court order to dissolve the organization.
According to the district court, 22 civil lawsuit rulings involving the church suggested there were people who were victimized by the group's illegal fundraising practices.
Following the high court's decision, the church, formally known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, said it would consider appealing the latest ruling, which it described as
"extremely unjust" and in violation of a precedent set by the Supreme Court.
The church maintains its senior officials have never been implicated in a criminal case and that the government's questioning of the organization is illegal.
After an almost yearlong investigation, the government filed a request in October 2023 with the district court for the dissolution order over the church's donation practices, a move that would deprive the group of its tax benefits.
It has said the church's "actions are clearly recognized as extremely harmful to public welfare" and violate the country's laws and regulations.
Tetsuya Yamagami, the accused shooter of Abe, has told police that the former prime minister's grandfather helped bring the church to Japan in the 1960s, according to investigative sources.
He also said his mother's massive donations to the Unification Church severely impacted his family, the sources said.
