Japan-South Korea undersea tunnel project hits dead end over Unification Church ties
- Project to link northern Kyushu with South Korea via 235km tunnel was the brainchild of Unification Church founder Moon Sun-myung
- Japanese politicians distance themselves from project after church’s controversial donation drives came to light following killing of former leader Shinzo Abe
In 1986, the Unification Church-backed International Highway Foundation began work to drill an inclined shaft through a mountain in Karatsu, northwestern Japan’s Saga prefecture.
At an estimated cost of 10 trillion yen (US$71 billion), the 235km tunnel linking northern Kyushu with South Korea was the brainchild of church founder Moon Sun-myung.
Japan to investigate coercion in ‘spiritual sales’ by Unification Church
The Asahi newspaper reported that by 2007, the underpass, six metres wide, had reached about 540 metres in length. Further drilling was halted after the pit hit the land-sea boundary.
Abe’s attacker told police he had a grudge against the church due to his bankrupt mother’s massive donations, and believed the slain politician had ties with it.
Since then, several followers have come forward and accused the church of demanding hefty donations and pressuring them to buy various items for exorbitant prices.
The government later launched a telephone consultation service for people affected by the church’s actions.
Moon, a self-declared messiah who died in 2012, started the Unification Church in South Korea in 1954. It claims to have about 600,000 followers in Japan and has branches in various countries.
According to the Asahi, several local councils had supported the project that received more than 10 billion yen in donations from the church and its followers.
However, the International Highway Foundation could not take the project forward due to difficulty in attracting donors and strained ties between Tokyo and Seoul, the Asahi said.
In 2017, the foundation formed the Japan-South Korea tunnel promotion council at a meeting in Tokyo.
“Let’s take a bullet train from Tokyo to Seoul,” the foundation’s chief Eiji Tokuno was quoted as saying at the gathering whose delegates included lawmakers from the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).
Kyodo last week said at least 146 LDP lawmakers had dealings with the church, formally known as the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification.
More than 100 Japan lawmakers had links with Unification Church: survey
The church-affiliated infrastructure initiative also caused unease in the government.
A lawyer for former church followers said the group used the tunnel project to exploit donors.
“The church took followers to the test drilling site on many backstage tours,” Hiroshi Hirata told the Asahi. “It gave the impression to followers that the church was committed to a significant activity and has been used as a pretext for soliciting donations to fund its activities.”
