Appalling: Japan Has Ignored Abuses for 60 Years

Patricia Duval, expert on international human rights, says it’s outrageous that Japanese authorities for 60 years have ignored gross human rights abuses against members of religious minority the Family Federation

Tokyo, 5th February 2025 – Published as an article in the Japanese newspaper Sekai Nippo. Republished with permission. Translated from Japanese. Original article. 

[Series] Request for Dissolution Order of the Family Federation – Suspicions of Fabricated Statements by the Ministry of Education

Part 2 of interview with an expert: Freedom of Religion is for the Minorities – Confinement Victims to Gain International Recognition

International Human Rights Lawyer Patricia Duval

by the Religious Freedom Investigative Team of the editorial department of Sekai Nippo

See part 1 of the interview

Interview (continued):

Q: Before and during World War II, the Japanese government carried out religious persecution. After the war, the Japanese Constitution enshrined freedom of religion. Now, 80 years later, the case of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (formerly the Unification Church) has become an opportunity for the entire nation to reflect on religious freedom as a fundamental human right. However, the government’s request for a dissolution order and the parallel legislative moves, such as the Special Law for Victims of Certain Illegal Acts, have raised concerns about various human rights violations against ordinary Family Federation members.

Duval: The government is facilitating a system where believers’ families are encouraged to lodge complaints, leading to the suppression of a religious organization. This is an extremely dangerous mechanism and must not be tolerated. Domestically, it violates the freedom of religion guaranteed by the Constitution. Internationally, it seriously infringes on the freedom of religion protected under international human rights treaties, making the government’s responsibility grave.

Q: In Japan’s legal system, freedom of religion is restricted by the concept of “public welfare”, which contrasts with the perspective of international law.

Duval: The UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) has, for over 15 years, consistently recommended that the Japanese government refrain from restricting freedom of religion based on the ambiguous concept of “public welfare”. This concept is legally vague and can be applied in an unlimited and arbitrary manner.

As an expert in international human rights law, I must emphasize that the core spirit of religious freedom is the protection of religious minorities’ faiths. In democratic states, freedom of religion is rarely discussed in the context of majority religions. The role of the government should be neutral, ensuring that neither the majority nor the minority is favored.

However, the request for the dissolution of the Family Federation by the Ministry of Education (MEXT) contradicts this principle. Under the guise of public welfare, it seeks to eradicate a religious minority. Furthermore, the government’s stance aligns with the majority rather than remaining neutral. These two points make it a violation of international human rights law.

Q: Speaking of human rights violations, over the past 60 years, as many as 4,300 Family Federation believers have been subjected to abduction, confinement, and coercive faith-breaking.

Duval: These victims were physically restrained through violent means, forcibly detained, and deprived of all freedoms until they renounced their faith. This ongoing practice has been called “the worst human rights violation in postwar Japan”. The most extreme case involved Toru Goto, who was confined for 12 years and 5 months. Recently, Asahi Shimbun (31^st January 2025) reported that a court ruled his relatives’ actions illegal and ordered them to pay 22 million yen in damages.

Article 18(2) of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) guarantees that individuals have the right not to be forcibly deprived of their religious freedom. It is outrageous that the Japanese government has neglected this issue for nearly 60 years, allowing 4,300 cases of abduction and forced renunciation to persist.

In 2014, the UN Human Rights Committee (HRC) presented concrete evidence and urged the Japanese government to take effective measures to protect this right. I vividly remember that a few months later, the Tokyo High Court finally handed down a ruling in favor of Goto, increasing his compensation in its verdict.

As a signatory (ratifying) nation, Japan must mobilize its law enforcement (police) and judiciary to eradicate these human rights violations. During my recent visit to Japan, I discovered that in just the past two years, two additional cases of abduction and coercive faith-breaking have occurred.

One of my missions is to bring international awareness to the human rights violations against religious minorities in Japan. After my time here, I plan to travel to the United States to advocate for this issue with relevant parties.

See part 1 of the interview

Featured image above: Patricia Duval – Member of the Paris Bar Association, specializing in international human rights law. Earned a degree in public law from Sorbonne University. Has defended the rights of religious and faith minorities both in France and internationally, including at the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR), the Council of Europe (CE), the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the European Union (EU), and the United Nations. Author of numerous academic papers on religion and freedom of belief. Photo: Sekai Nippo

Related to Japan has ignored abuses: Japan’s New Laws to Curb New Religious Movements

Also related to Japan has ignored abuses: New Law Designed to Bankrupt Family Federation

Also related to Japan has ignored abuses: Terms from Consumer Law Used to Rob Faith

And also related to Japan has ignored abuses: Maverick Minister Lets “3 Foxes in the Henhouse”

More, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Journalist Reveals Ugly Leftwing Conspiracy

And more, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Militant Lawyers Dictate Government Policy

And more, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Courts Using Debunked Concepts Against Minority

Also related to Japan has ignored abuses: Dissolution Case: Wild Claims, Illegal Actions

Also related to Japan has ignored abuses: 2nd-Generation Members Protesting Persecution

Also related to Japan has ignored abuses: Inhuman Government-Supported Mass Deprogramming

And also related to Japan has ignored abuses: Bias: No Right to Respond for Religious Minority

More, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Collusion to Rob Minority of Its Rights

And more, related to Japan has ignored abuses: State and Media Creating “Today’s Non-Citizens”

Still more, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Japan Criticized for Glaring Rights Violations

Even more, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Two European Scholars Warning Japan

And yet more, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Japan Censured at Religious Freedom Event

And still more, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Lawyer Exposes Dirty Leftwing Plot

And even more, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Inhuman Government-Supported Mass Deprogramming

And still more, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Malicious One-Sided Government Source Selection

More, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Government’s Foul Play Pointed Out

More, related to Japan has ignored abuses: Kishida Has Opened Can of Worms