Articles
In-depth investigative journalism on democracy, religious freedom, and human rights in Korea and Japan.
Japan's 2022 Law Treats Religious Offerings as Consumer Transactions
In hindsight, 2022 may have marked the moment when religious offerings in Japan were reclassified as a matter of 'consumption. Tanaka Tomihiro, the former head of the Family Federation for World Peace
Why He Called It 'Victory Over Communism,' Not 'Anti-Communism': 30 Years on the Front Lines
From Japan's pro-North Korea organizations to a face-to-face meeting with Gorbachev in the Kremlin, a religious leader spent three decades going directly to the places where communism was spreading
Does Dissolving the Family Federation Actually Help Victims? The Major Contradiction in the Ruling
Former president Tanaka Tomihiro argues that the Tokyo High Court ruling contains a logical contradiction at its core, and that the liquidation process may push victim redress further out of reach.
228 Days in Custody: Dr. Hak Ja Han's Three Surgeries and 56 Days Hospitalized
Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon (83), president of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification (the Unification Church), was taken into custody by the Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Special
Lee Jae-myung Government's One-Year Legislative Push for Regime Defense
President Lee Jae-myung and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea have advanced major legislation across the judiciary, the prosecution, the press, and martial law in parallel during the past year,
The Witness Korea Built Its Religious Crackdown On Has a Diary Problem
President Lee Jae Myung has spent five months demanding the power to dissolve the Family Federation. The 23rd hearing of Hak Ja Han's trial shows what his case is built on: a witness whose own diary
Faith Beyond Borders: US Bishops Stand with Japan’s Family Federation
When a nation erases a religion as a legal entity, what do believers across the sea have to say? On 4 March 2026, the Tokyo High Court issued a ruling that erased the Family Federation for World Peace
Suspension of Detention Extension and Trial Progress from FFWPU HQ
This is a translation of the internal memo from FFWPU HQ originally written in Korean. Dear beloved family members, To all family members who are praying with concern for True Mother’s health and
100+ U.S. Believers Arrive in Japan: Solidarity Under Family Federation Dissolution
More than 100 second-generation members and pastors arrived in Tokyo, organised in roughly two weeks More than 100 members of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification travelled from
What is Chongryon? North Korea's Outpost in Japan — and a Problem Left Unresolved for 80 Years
The debate over Japan's proposed anti-espionage law and foreign agents registration system under the Takaichi administration is bringing renewed attention to the General Association of Korean
Trump Picks Michelle Park Steel: A "Next Move" Toward Democratizing China and North Korea?
President Donald Trump has nominated former congresswoman Michelle Park Steel as U.S. ambassador to South Korea. For Lee Chun-geun (이춘근), a Korean foreign policy analyst and international relations
South Korea's Silent Rewrite: The Lee Jae-myung Government Races to Change the Constitution
A 38-day amendment drive is moving through the cabinet and National Assembly with little public debate and almost no media coverage. One journalist calls it the start of a shift toward socialism.
Dissolution on Paper, Destitution in Practice: Family Federation Staff Face Severance Gap
An internal notice circulated to staff of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification sets a May 20 dismissal date and limits severance to base pay only. Between the welfare backstop the
Not to Kill Communists, but to Save Them": 31 Years of Inter-Korean Engagement
December 6, 1991. Heungnam, South Hamgyong Province — the ground where a young missionary had once been sentenced to five years of hard labor by the communist regime. That same man now returned as a
Michelle Park Nomination Is Trump's Message to Block China's Election-Based Subversion of S. Korea
Translation of Hanmi Ilbo article by reporter Heo Gyeom, April 17, 2026 Trump's America puts confronting communism first… "Korea is a crucial foothold" "Create meaningful triggers so the U.S. and
Trump Taps Korean American Ex-Lawmaker Michelle Park Steel as Next U.S. Ambassador to Seoul
Why She Is What the U.S.-Korea Alliance Needs Right Now On April 13, 2026, U.S. President Donald Trump (@realDonaldTrump) nominated Korean American former congresswoman Michelle Steel
The False Promises of Communism: Why Ideals Without God Always Collapse
What Communism Claims to Offer — and What Religion Actually Delivers Communism appealed to humanity's deepest longings. Equality, solidarity, dignity for the poor — for the early idealists at least,
Why Dr. Hak Ja Han Deserves the Nobel Prize — A Record of Her Life's Work
How did a woman who lost her homeland to war come to sit at the same table as world leaders? And why is a former EU Special Envoy putting her name forward for the Nobel Peace Prize right now? On March
The Day "Speculation" Became Grounds for Dissolving a Religious Organization
On March 4, 2026, the Tokyo High Court upheld the dissolution order against the Family Federation. There is not a single criminal conviction. Voices questioning a ruling that rested on "speculative
President Lee and the DPK’s Attack on Democracy in South Korea
Recently, a senior delegation of South Korean monks openly condemned President Lee and the DPK as “dictators like Hitler or Stalin” and explicitly declared that “the free Republic of Korea [faces]
What Changes for the Family Federation in Japan Following the Ruling?
On March 4, the Tokyo High Court upheld the dissolution order against the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification — formerly the Unification Church. After a year-long legal battle, a
March 4th: Family Federation Verdict to Decide the Future of Religious Freedom in Asia
Seventy years of communist persecution converge in a Tokyo High Court ruling—will Japan defend the "freedom of religion" guaranteed by Japan's Constitution? Or will they hand victory to the
Why Did 70 Religious Leaders From Around the World Fly to South Korea?
Christian, Muslim, Jewish, Hindu — clergy of every faith converged on one woman They didn't come for a conference. They didn't come for tourism. More than 70 religious leaders from five continents
Is the CCP Cheering the Takedown of Religious Groups in Japan and Korea?
How a web of anti-cult organizations across China, South Korea, and Japan may serve China's war on faith. Note: This commentary is based on publicly available sources. It does not assert
"The Character of a Society Is Measured by How It Treats Its Most Vulnerable"
— Wisdom from Around the World, and the Question Humanity Must Face In the spring of 2020, the Canadian military was deployed to nursing homes in Quebec. What soldiers found inside were elderly
143 Days and Counting: Inside South Korea’s Crackdown on Religious Freedom
SEOUL — As of today, Dr. Hak Ja Han Moon—an 83-year-old great-grandmother revered by millions worldwide as the “Mother of Peace”—has spent 143 days in South Korean government custody. She is currently
China's Religious Crackdown: Trump to Raise Pastor Ezra Jin's Release with Xi at Beijing Summit
President Donald Trump has pledged to raise the release of Pastor Jin Mingri (金明日), known in English as Ezra Jin, with Chinese President Xi Jinping during his visit to Beijing beginning May 13. The
Translations
Articles available in Korean and Japanese
テロか、憲法か、それとも司法の越権か？
日本における統一教会を標的とした人道に対する罪－拉致監禁
韓国の左派的裏切り：親北勢力がアメリカの主要同盟国を脅かす
한국의 좌파적 배신: 친북 세력이 미국의 핵심 동맹을 위협하다
국경을 넘는 신앙: 미국 기독교 주교 일본 방문 — 가정연합과 함께 하다
国境を越える信仰：米国のキリスト教司教らが訪日ー家庭連合と共に立つ
미국 신자 100여 명 일본 방문 ー가정연합 해산 사태 속, 국경 넘은 결속
アメリカ信者100人以上が来日 ー 家庭連合の解散下に国境越えた連帯
統一教会:日本の解散命令と国際法 — コンプライアンス宣言の無視
統一教会:日本の解散命令と国際法ー 解散は必要だったのか
統一教会:日本の解散命令と国際法ー洗脳論の再来か
統一教会:日本の解散命令と国際法 — 「公の秩序」の保護とは?
ミシェル・パク指名は、選挙を通じた中国による韓国転覆を阻止するトランプ大統領のメッセージ
3월 4일: 일본 가정연합 판결이 아시아 종교 자유의 미래를 결정한다
