The dissolution order for the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (formerly the Unification Church) in Japan has been finalized by the Supreme Court of Japan.

According to Kyodo News and NHK on June 24, the Supreme Court dismissed the group's special appeal on June 23, upholding the Tokyo High Court's ruling that ordered the dissolution of the organization.

Presiding Justice Eriko Watanabe of the Supreme Court's Third Petty Bench stated, "From 1973 to 2022, members of the religious group continuously engaged in solicitation of donations that constituted illegal acts, causing financial and mental damage to a large number of people."

The court further ruled that even when considering the mental impact on the religious group and its followers, "the dissolution is necessary and unavoidable."

The Family Federation had sparked social controversy due to the collection of exorbitant donations, leading the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology to file a request for a dissolution order with the Tokyo District Court in 2023.

In March of last year, the Tokyo District Court ordered the dissolution of the Family Federation.

At the time, the court pointed out that there were at least 1,500 victims of donation-related damages, with the total amount reaching 20.4 billion yen (approximately 194.4 billion won).

In March, the Tokyo High Court also upheld the first-instance ruling ordering the dissolution. Following the second-instance ruling, a court-appointed liquidator began the liquidation process, which involves investigating and managing the group's assets and compensating victims of the donations.

The Family Federation appealed the decision to the Supreme Court, claiming it was an "unjust judgment made in violation of the principle of trial based on evidence, as it was not proven by facts and evidence," but the appeal was ultimately dismissed.

In Japan, the issue of exorbitant donations by the Family Federation became a major social problem after the perpetrator who assassinated former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in July 2022 stated that his motive was his mother's massive donations to the Unification Church, which had ruined his family.

Only two other religious corporations have had their dissolution orders finalized due to violations of laws and regulations, including Aum Shinrikyo, which carried out the 1995 Tokyo subway sarin gas attack.

In those cases, senior officials of the religious groups were involved in criminal cases.

The Family Federation is the first religious group to have a dissolution order finalized based on civil law torts.

Following the Supreme Court's ruling on June 23, the Family Federation expressed regret.

The group claimed, "With the start of the liquidation process, we are no longer able to access any of our more than 300 church facilities across the country," adding, "While we are responding faithfully to the liquidation work, our followers who have lost their churches are experiencing significant mental distress."

According to NHK, since the liquidation process began accepting claims for damages, such as those related to donations, on May 20, 61 people have filed applications in about one month.

(Photo: Yonhap News)