Lawyers helping victims of the Unification Church’s aggressive donation solicitation practices in Japan said on Thursday that an arbitration had been concluded, ordering the church to pay a total of more than 50 million yen (US$340,000) in damages to three former believers in their eighties – the first such agreement between the two parties.
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The arbitration case filed with the Tokyo District Court was one of over 180 cases brought by victims seeking around 6 billion yen over the issue, which came to light following the assassination of former prime minister Shinzo Abe in 2022 by a man who claimed to hold a grudge against the church due to its aggressive fundraising.
The group, known as Lawyers from Across Japan for the Victims of the Unification Church, began arbitration proceedings in July 2023, following the church’s refusal to engage in collective bargaining over the matter.
A woman who was swindled out of around 36 million yen by the church said that she “hopes other victims will reach a resolution soon”, adding that she had been frustrated by the deception.
Lead lawyer Susumu Murakoshi noted that the church’s decision to accept the agreement was “huge progress,” saying: “The possibility of relief has opened up for many victims who had given up until today.”
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The Unification Church was founded by a staunch anti-communist in South Korea in 1954. It earned its religious corporation status in Japan in 1964, helped by former prime minister Nobusuke Kishi, the grandfather of Abe, who forged ties between the Liberal Democratic Party and the church.