Media Turning Public Opinion Against a Minority

Public opinion warfare: Japanese author reveals how deliberate manipulation of narrative by activists assisted by the media and politicians created a climate of social exclusion for minority

Tokyo, 9^th July 2026 – Published as an article in the Japanese newspaper Sekai Nippo. Republished with permission. Translated from Japanese. Original article.

[Part 2 (final) of interview with author Fumihiro Kato]

Places of Worship Are Integral to Religious Freedom

Four Years Since the Assassination of Former Prime Minister Abe

by Yoichiro Miyata (宮田陽一郎)

Human Rights Trampled with the Media as an Ally

Interviewer: Yoichiro Miyata (宮田陽一郎)

See part 1 of the interview: Using Abe’s Assassination Against Unificationism

– There was little media coverage of “second-generation religious believers” during the 1980s and 1990s.

The events of the 1980s and 1990s were essentially scandals surrounding well-known public figures. Those watching were little more than spectators gawking at the commotion.

See also Lawfare: State Uses Legal System in War on Faith

See also Dissolution Case: Attorney Reveals Inside Story

See also Volunteer Group Barred After Question Over Ties

See also When Giving Becomes Grounds for Dissolution

See also How Media Narrative Was Changed to Attack Faith

See also: The Anatomy of Japan’s Hostile Media Campaign

See also BBC, Bias, and the Weaponization of Language

This time, however, anonymous people identified as second-generation religious believers [See editor’s note below] brought forward issues that were fundamentally family disputes, yet they were presented as though they were universally true and representative of all such cases. As a result, society developed suspicions such as, “Could my own family become like that?” or “Will I be deceived the moment I step outside my home?” Once such suspicion takes root, it is very difficult to dispel. It spread into criticism and distrust directed at then-Prime Minister Fumio Kishida (岸田文雄), members of his cabinet, and Diet lawmakers.

– On 4^th March, the Tokyo High Court upheld the dissolution order against the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (formerly the Unification Church), and on 22^nd June the Supreme Court finalized that order. The religious organization‘s facilities are now under the control of court-appointed liquidators, and members can no longer freely use them. How do you view this situation?

Initially, attorney Masaki Kito (紀藤正樹) and journalist Eito Suzuki (鈴木エイト), among others, argued that a dissolution order would merely strip the religious organization of its tax privileges. In reality, that was not the case.

Article 1 of the Religious Corporations Act begins by stating: “The purpose of this Act is to enable religious organizations to own, maintain, and administer places of worship and other property…” Article 2 defines a religious organization as one that possesses “places of worship, such as shrines, temples, churches, monasteries, and similar institutions.”

In other words, places of worship are inseparable from the freedom of religion itself.

The three essential elements of a state are said to be territory, people, and sovereignty. If a religious organization can no longer use its facilities, isn’t that analogous to a nation losing its territory? The government, politicians, and even the judiciary have never seriously reflected on religion. They speak of religious freedom, but they have never truly considered what religious freedom actually means.

A person’s freedom of conscience cannot be violated. However, simply allowing someone to hold religious beliefs does not by itself mean that freedom of religion is guaranteed. Freedom of religion is inseparable from the ability to engage in real-world religious activities, such as worship in churches, temples, mosques, and other places of worship. The failure of the government, politicians, the judiciary, and society to recognize this was the real problem.

– What impact do you believe the dissolution order against the Family Federation will have on Japanese society going forward?

The issuance of the dissolution order has created an atmosphere in society suggesting that the assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (安倍晋三) has now been settled and brought to a close. I find that extremely strange.

Another issue is how the grounds for the dissolution order kept shifting. At first, the issue was reframed as one concerning the relationship between religion and politics. Then it became about religion and consumer disputes. Eventually, it was reframed again as an issue of religious freedom. As a result of these successive changes in justification, it ultimately came to be accepted that, because Mr. Abe had been shot and killed, it was only natural for the Family Federation to be dissolved. Isn’t that an extremely serious matter?

Deliberate changes (人為的にすり替え) in the framing of the issue created a particular climate throughout society, politics, and the judiciary.

As a result, members of the Family Federation have become targets of violations of their fundamental human rights. Some find themselves unable to hold funerals. They are subjected to discriminatory treatment and have been excluded from society. This social climate has produced those outcomes. This has left a precedent demonstrating that, even without amending the Constitution or any laws, it is possible to bring about such violations of human rights simply by winning the mass media to one’s side.

See also Believers’ Social Exclusion, Loss of Civil Rights

For someone like me, who has observed this issue without being a member of the Family Federation, the lesson is, “Tomorrow it could be me.”

I am not engaged in advocacy saying, “The Family Federation‘s teachings are wonderful. Let’s all make donations.” Rather, I simply say, “These are the facts, and this is what is happening in society.” Yet even for doing that, I have been excluded from the world of public commentary and the media. The social exclusion of people who are not even members has already begun.

Take the issue of foreign nationals, for example. It goes without saying that discriminating against foreigners is wrong. But there are also foreigners who come to Japan under circumstances that are not well understood, fail to follow Japanese law, and create social disorder. It is also true that if someone attempts to report on those cases, they are liable to be excluded.

If the media and politicians set events in motion, and the judiciary ends up legitimizing judgments, I would consider mistaken, then it becomes entirely possible for people who seek to communicate certain viewpoints to be excluded from society. I genuinely feel that danger. And I believe there is no doubt that this will happen again.

See part 1 of the interview: Using Abe’s Assassination Against Unificationism

See also Lawfare: State Uses Legal System in War on Faith

See also Dissolution Case: Attorney Reveals Inside Story

See also Volunteer Group Barred After Question Over Ties

See also When Giving Becomes Grounds for Dissolution

See also How Media Narrative Was Changed to Attack Faith

See also: The Anatomy of Japan’s Hostile Media Campaign

See also When Religious Intolerance Turns Violent

See also BBC, Bias, and the Weaponization of Language

Featured image above: Attorney Nobuya Fukumoto representing the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification respond to reporters after the Tokyo High Court’s decision ordering the religious organization‘s dissolution, 4^th March 2026, Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo. Photo: Takahide Ishii (石井孝秀)

[Editor’s note: The term 宗教2世 (shūkyō nisei, literally “second-generation religious believer”) generally refers to people who were raised in a religion by parents who belonged to a religious organization, rather than joining it themselves as adults.]

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