Unification Church’s founder was ‘close’ to Shinzo Abe’s grandfather, former chairman says
- Kwak Chung Hwan, the church’s former chairman, told reporters in Seoul that church founder Sun Myung Moon was also close to Shinzo Abe’s father
- Japanese media have speculated that Abe’s killer was motivated to carry out the attack because of a grudge he held against the religious group
Responding to a question about the relationship between the religious group and Japan’s ruling Liberal Democratic Party, Kwak said, “President Sun Myung Moon [of the church] was close to former Japanese Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi,” Abe’s grandfather.
The former chairman and reportedly one-time No 2 of the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, widely known as the Unification Church, added that he knew Moon, the church’s founder, was also close to Abe’s father, former Japanese Foreign Minister Shintaro Abe.
Kwak said political leaders in Japan during the 1960s to 1970s were concerned about left-leaning movements in the country.
Around that time, Moon released his anti-communism theory which impressed Japanese political leaders, the former chairman said.
“Donations from Japan contributed to Moon’s activities across the world greatly,” he said.