“Poorly Compiled Evidence Including Falsehoods”

Experienced legal expert claims evidence containing falsehoods, and hearings behind closed doors infringe on rights of religious minority and are unconstitutional 

Tokyo, 3rd 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

Interview with an expert: “Victim” Reports Directly Used as Evidence

Seishiro Sugihara, professor of the former Musashino Women’s University

Dissolution Request to Become a Major Issue

by the editorial department of Sekai Nippo

Part 1 of the article

See part 2, part 3

See also 6 Ministry Officials Sued Over Evidence Forgery

See also Flawed, Deceptive Evidence Gathering by State

See also Alleged Evidence Tampering in Dissolution Case

This paper reported about fabrications in the statements submitted as evidence by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) to the Tokyo District Court in its request for a dissolution order against the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (formerly the Unification Church). We spoke regarding the issue with professor Seishiro Sugihara (杉原誠四郎) of the former Musashino Women’s University.

Q: As reported by this paper on 21st January, there are multiple pieces of information suggesting that the statements submitted as evidence by MEXT in its dissolution request were not actually written by the individuals identified as “victims”, and that they contain falsehoods contrary to fact. What do you think about this?

This was entirely predictable from the beginning.

Originally, when MEXT submitted the dissolution request to the Tokyo District Court, it announced the number of “victims” and the total “financial damage”. However, this total was merely the sum of the amounts claimed by individuals who identified themselves as “victims”.

To understand this, one can compare it to an ordinary criminal case. In criminal cases, prosecutors collect evidence to prove a crime, but not everything collected is immediately treated as evidence. Prosecutors assess the evidentiary value and credibility before determining which materials can serve as valid evidence.

However, in this dissolution request by MEXT, the evidence submitted to the court was merely a collection of “victim” reports, without any means of verifying their evidentiary validity. MEXT simply compiled the claimed damages and submitted them as they were.

Given this, it is entirely foreseeable that statements could exist where the supposed “victims” themselves did not write them, or where falsehoods contradicting the facts were included. This is not surprising at all.

Using such materials as grounds for dissolution and requesting a dissolution order is clearly an overreach as an administrative act. If a dissolution request can be made based on such unfairly collected evidence, then any “harm” reported by former believers who left their faith or by associates of believers could serve as grounds for dissolution.

If that is the case, how many existing religious corporations could be subjected to dissolution requests? In short, the procedure used by MEXT to collect evidence for the dissolution request of the Family Federation is something that the Religious Corporations Act never originally intended.

Q: Senator Satoshi Hamada (浜田聡) submitted a written inquiry to MEXT requesting fact-checking regarding this newspaper’s report, but MEXT did not respond. What do you think about the fact that the proceedings are being conducted in a closed, non-public manner?

The Tokyo District Court is handling MEXT’s dissolution request as a “non-contentious case” proceeding. Since this is not a trial in the usual sense, it is understandable that the process is not public. The secrecy of the proceedings is stipulated under the “Non-Contentious Case Procedures Act”.

However, if a religious organization is dissolved through such a non-public process, it means that its right to a public trial under Article 32 of the Constitution is not guaranteed, making this clearly unconstitutional.

Regarding Senator Hamada’s inquiry, while MEXT did not respond, it is generally permissible for the deliberations of MEXT’s Religious Affairs Council to be non-public due to the sensitive nature of the issues discussed. However, if the evidence that formed the basis of their conclusion includes falsehoods, this will inevitably become a major issue in the future.

What is particularly concerning is the Religious Affairs Council itself. Despite having multiple religious representatives as members, it approved the dissolution request based on such poorly compiled materials – this is a serious problem.

Continued in part 2, part 3.

See also 6 Ministry Officials Sued Over Evidence Forgery

See also Flawed, Deceptive Evidence Gathering by State

See also Alleged Evidence Tampering in Dissolution Case

Featured image above: Seishiro Sugihara, born in 1941 in Hiroshima Prefecture. Completed a master’s degree in education at the University of Tokyo Graduate School in 1967. Served as a professor at Josai University and Musashino Women’s University (now Musashino University).
Notable publications include The Ideal Separation of Religion and State and Constitutional Revision (Jiyusha, 2015). Co-authored The Disease Called Shigeru Yoshida (Jiyusha, 2021). Photo: Sekai Nippo

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