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2026 January 21 - 27 [POLITICS]

Pass judgment on gov’t that has kept symbiotic ties with Unification Church

Akahata editorial (excerpts)

The Nara District Court on January 21 sentenced Yamagami Tetsuya to life imprisonment for the shooting of former Prime Minister Abe Shinzo who had close ties with the Unification Church.

During 15 court sessions, Yamagami explained his motives for the crime and recounted his difficult life, including how his family collapsed after his mother joined the Unification Church (Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, aka Moonies) and donated a total of 100 million yen.

The hearings once again highlighted the longstanding collusion between the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and the Unification Church, despite the LDP being aware of the church’s shady and often illegal activities.

In the 1980s, the church’s “spiritual sales” of costly goods and large donations using spiritual pressure tactics became major social issues. The National Lawyers Network against Spiritual Sales estimates that Moonies-related consultations totaled 35,000 from 1987 to 2023, with damages amounting to 134 billion yen.

The criminal activities of this religious cult were left untouched for many years precisely because of its cozy relationship with the ruling LDP. The LDP used the Unification Church for election campaigns, while the Unification Church used influential LDP politicians as billboards. Consequently, the LDP contributed to the expansion of the damage caused by the organization’s criminal activities.

The Moonies maintained close ties with the late former Prime Minister Kishi Nobusuke (Abe’s grandfather), Abe himself, and the Abe-led LDP faction “Seiwakai”. The extent of their collusion is documented in the “TM Special Report”. TM stands for True Mother, referring to Hak Ja Han.

Abe was shot during a street speech he was delivering in support of an LDP candidate in Nara City. According to the TM report, prior to Abe’s speech that day, a separate rally took place to mobilize all Unification Church followers in the city, with the candidate’s wife attending. The report writes that after the rally, some followers participated in Abe’s speech and the rest made phone calls requesting votes for the candidate.

In order to provide relief for Unification Church victims, it is essential for the ruling party and politicians to sever their collusive ties with this organization.