Japan PM promises law to help Unification Church victims

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, right, and the leader of Kishida's coalition partner, Natsuo Yamaguchi pose for a photo as they meet to discuss a bill to help victims of the religious group known as the Unification Church, at the prime minister's official residence in Tokyo, Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022. (Keisuke Hosojima/Kyodo News via AP)

TOKYO (AP) — Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida said Tuesday he will speed up the drafting and passage of a law to regulate the collection of donations by religious groups and protect families of believers after he met with victims of the Unification Church and was heartbroken by their “horrendous experiences.â€

Also Tuesday, a government committee drafted standards to be used to compile questions for use in investigating the controversial South Korean-based religious group, whose decades of cozy ties with Japan’s governing party surfaced after the July assassination of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe.

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