Appeal Dismissed in Case about Most Unjust Fine

Appeal dismissed: Persecuted religious minority regards ruling to impose fine as unconstitutional and in violation of past Supreme Court precedents, making it extremely unjust

Tokyo, 28th August 2024 – Published as an article in the Japanese newspaper Sekai Nippo. Republished with permission. Translated from Japanese. Original article

High Court Upholds Fine Verdict; Family Federation Claims, “Ruling Violates Constitution”

by the editorial department of Sekai Nippo

In a court case where the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology sought an administrative fine for the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (formerly known as the Unification Church) for refusing to answer some of its questions, the Tokyo High Court on the 27th August upheld the Tokyo District Court’s verdict ordering the religious organization’s president Tomihiro Tanaka (田中富広) to pay a fine of 100,000 yen and dismissed the Family Federation’s prompt appeal.

Since November 2022, the Ministry has exercised its right to question the Family Federation seven times, seeking answers to over 500 items, including donation practices and examples of legal settlements.

The religious organization refused to respond to more than 100 of these questions, prompting the district court to impose fines. The details of the items the organization did not respond to and the content of their responses have not been disclosed.

The religious organization argued that the exercise of the right to question itself was illegal and claimed that some responses were withheld to protect the privacy of its members. On 8^th April of this year, the federation filed a prompt appeal with the Tokyo High Court against the Tokyo District Court’s decision.

The Family Federation commented,

“Like the Tokyo District Court, the Tokyo High Court’s ruling to impose the fine is unconstitutional and violates past Supreme Court precedents, making it extremely unjust. We will review the detailed content of the ruling and consider a special appeal.”

Featured image above: Japanese court issuing verdict. Illustration: Microsoft Designer Image Creator, 28th August 2024.

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