Wealthy women are targets for ‘spiritual sales’ by Moonies

Japan Press Weekly

Japan Press Service Co., Ltd. is the only news agency providing information of progressive, democratic movements in Japan

Wealthy women are targets for ‘spiritual sales’ by Moonies

About 3.74 billion yen were siphoned off in 2009 in “spiritual sales” by the Japan Unification Church, a lawyers group reported on March 19.

The National Lawyers Network against Spiritual Sales held its 51st meeting in Gifu City and cautioned that the Unification Church has been increasing its access to Dietmembers of the ruling Democratic Party of Japan and the Liberal Democratic Party, the former ruling party, as the criminal investigations into “spiritual sales” have progressed.

The Unification Church promotes a sense of fear of the “curse of ancestors in the spirit world” and tricks people into buying exorbitantly costly pots and seals or making donations “to be free from the fatal destiny of ancestors.”

Criminal investigation authorities conducted crackdowns on “spiritual sales” cases last year. However, the total amount of damage to victims was almost the same as the year before (3.73 billion yen). In addition, this figure is only a total of money spent by those who actually recognized that they had been swindled and consulted lawyers of the National Lawyers Network against Spiritual Sales.

Watanabe Hiroshi, a lawyer in Tokyo, said that wealthy women suddenly disappeared from their homes and their whereabouts are unknown. In many cases, such women left their homes after their families discovered that hundreds of million yen had been donated to the Unification Church of Japan.

- Akahata, March 20, 2010