Shinsuke Suematsu is a Japanese politician who serves as a member of the House of Councillors in the Diet of Japan. He has represented the Hyogo at-large district as a member of the Liberal Democratic Party since 2004. He served as Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology from 2021 to 2022.
Kōichi Hagiuda is a Japanese politician serving as the Chairman of the Policy Research Council of the Liberal Democratic Party. He previously served as Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry from October 2021 to August 2022, and was Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary from 2015 to 2016 and Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology from 2019 to 2021.
Akira Amari is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and a member of the lower house representing the Minami Kanto Bloc.
Fumio Kishida is a Japanese politician serving as prime minister of Japan and president of the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) since 2021. A member of the House of Representatives, he previously served as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2012 to 2017 and as acting Minister of Defense in 2017. From 2017 to 2020, he also chaired the LDP Policy Research Council.
Yasutoshi Nishimura is a Japanese politician who has served as the Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry since August 2022. Nishimura previously served as Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy from 2019 to 2021. A member of the Liberal Democratic Party, he has been a member of the House of Representatives since 2003, representing Hyogo’s 9th district.
Daishiro Yamagiwa is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party, a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet. He served as Minister in charge of Economic Revitalization under the cabinet of Prime Minister Fumio Kishida from October 2021 to October 2022.
Satoshi Ninoyu is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party, and served as a member of the House of Councillors in the Diet. As National Public Safety Commission chairperson, Ninoyu ordered police authorities to set up an investigation panel to look into the security issues following former-premier Shinzo Abe's assassination. A native of Kyoto, Kyoto and graduate of Keio University, he was elected for the first time in 2004 after serving in the assembly of Kyoto Prefecture for five terms since 1987.
The Suga Cabinet governed Japan under the leadership of Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga from 16 September 2020 to 4 October 2021. The government was a coalition between the Liberal Democratic Party and the Komeito and controlled both the upper and lower houses of the National Diet.
The 2021 Liberal Democratic Party leadership election was held on 29 September 2021 to elect the next president of the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan. The winner of the election, Fumio Kishida, became the prime minister of Japan, and led the party into the 2021 Japanese general election.
The First Kishida Cabinet was the 100th Cabinet of Japan. Formed by Fumio Kishida on October 4, 2021, it had 21 members, including three women. Two ministers, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi and Defense Minister Nobuo Kishi, retained their posts from the previous cabinet. The government is a coalition between the Liberal Democratic Party and the Komeito who controlled both the upper and lower houses of the National Diet.
Takayuki Kobayashi is a Japanese politician who served in the Kishida Cabinet as Minister for Economic Security from 2021 to 2022.
The Second Kishida Cabinet is the 101st Cabinet of Japan and was formed in November 2021 by Fumio Kishida, leader of the Liberal Democratic Party and Prime Minister of Japan.
Shinzo Abe, the former prime minister of Japan and a serving member of the House of Representatives, was assassinated on 8 July 2022 while speaking at a political event outside Yamato-Saidaiji Station in Nara City, Nara Prefecture, Japan. While delivering a campaign speech for a Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) candidate, he was shot from behind at close range by a man with an improvised firearm. Abe was transported by a medical helicopter to Nara Medical University Hospital in Kashihara, where he was pronounced dead.
Tetsuya Yamagami is a Japanese man who is accused of assassinating Shinzo Abe, the former Prime Minister of Japan, on 8 July 2022. A resident of Nara, he was arrested at the scene of the assassination. He was 41 years old, had no prior criminal history, and was unemployed at the time of his arrest.
The National Network of Lawyers Against Spiritual Sales is a non-profit anti-cult association established in May 1987, comprising about 300 lawyers in Japan. It is specialized in providing legal assistance for victims of cult-related frauds, known as spiritual sales (霊感商法) in Japan, from religious organizations, primarily the Unification Church (UC), as well as advocating preventive measures against the malpractices.
Kimi Onoda is a Japanese politician. She serves as Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Defense since 2022 and as a member of the House of Councillors representing the Liberal Democratic Party. She previously served as Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Justice under the Suga Cabinet (2020–2021).
Shūkyō nisei (宗教2世), literally "religion second generation", is a Japanese phrase, which refers to children being raised by their parents with strong religious beliefs. These children may be forced to practice the same religion against their will by their parents. They are also called "karuto nisei" or "nisei shinja". These children are reportedly often challenged by hardships, such as child neglect, child abuse, psychology, finance, academy, and social independence because of their religious parents and the predatory practices of the religious organization. While the shūkyō nisei is a longstanding social issue in Japan, Japanese government has been accused of inaction. Within the Unification Church, children born directly from the parents paired by the organization in the mass wedding are also called the "shukufuku nisei".
On 21 March 2023, Fumio Kishida, the Prime Minister of Japan, visited Ukraine. This was the first visit to Ukraine by the Prime Minister since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Sayuri Ogawa is the pseudonym of a Japanese woman who was a former follower of the Unification Church (UC). She left her parents and the church at the age of 20 after suffering sexual harassment and religious abuse. Since the assassination of Shinzo Abe, the former Prime Minister of Japan, on 8 July 2022, she has become an anti-cult activist, appearing in government hearings and media interviews to address issues related to the malpractices of new religious organisations, particularly concerning the welfare of shūkyō nisei. Ogawa herself is also a shūkyō nisei, specifically a "blessed second generation" (祝福二世) or "child of god" (神の子), as she was born to a couple paired by the UC in its mass wedding.
Eito Suzuki is a pseudonymous Japanese investigative journalist who covers new religious movements in the country. His primary area of editorial coverage is fraudulent missionary activities and the relationship between religious organizations and major political parties, primarily the Unification Church (UC) and the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).
