Tuesday, Oct. 18

Japanese Prime Minister Kishida Fumio says he will instruct the government to submit bills aimed at providing relief to the victims of the shady practices of the former Unification Church, possibly during the current session of the Diet.

The religious group is under close scrutiny for alleged shady marketing practices and the solicitation of large donations from followers.

Kishida was speaking at a meeting of the Lower House Budget Committee on Tuesday.

The head of the opposition Constitutional Democratic Party's Policy Research Committee, Nagatsuma Akira, asked the prime minister whether the government would submit a draft amendment to relevant legislation before the current Diet session closes.

Kishida indicated that the government will accelerate efforts to submit revisions to the Consumer Contract Act and other relevant legislation. He said preparations will be made with the current Diet session in mind.

Kishida also referred to the government's planned investigation of the group, to be conducted under the Religious Corporations Act. A provision of the act grants authorities "the right to collect reports and ask questions" of groups suspected of violating the law.

He said the government has so far received 1,700 complaints about the group's practices. He added that some of the cases may be violating criminal and other laws.

Kishida also touched on the requirements for seeking a court order to disband the former Unification Church based on the Religious Corporations Act.

Kishida said the government will observe a relevant 1996 Supreme Court precedent. He noted that the government interprets that the precedent does not consider civil law violations as a requisite for a disbandment order.

https://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/news/20221018_19/