Japan court orders Moonies Church to be stripped of legal recognition

The logo of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (FFWPU), known as the Unification Church, is seen at the entrance of the Japan branch headquarters in Tokyo on March 25, 2025. - AFP

TOKYO: A Japanese court ordered on Tuesday (March 25) that the religious sect the Unification Church be stripped of official recognition, the government said, in the wake of the 2022 assassination of ex-prime minister Shinzo Abe.

An education ministry spokesman told AFP that the Tokyo District Court "issued the dissolution order" for the Japanese chapter of the Unification Church, founded in South Korea and nicknamed the "Moonies" after its late founder, Sun Myung Moon.