Roundtable “Unification Church in Japan as a Sociocultural and Political Phenomenon”
D. V. Streltsov,
K. O. Naka,
V. V. Nelidov,
K. O. Sarkisov,
V. N. Dobrovolsky,
I. P. Lebedeva,
I. A. Romanova https://doi.org/10.55105/2500-2872-2023-1-111-129
Abstract
In the second half of 2022, the Japanese political world was shaken by a major scandal: in July 2022, former Prime Minister and a prominent member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party Abe Shinzō was killed at an election rally. The assassin, caught at the crime scene, declared that the murder was a revenge for the victim’s connection with the Unification Church, which, according to the perpetrator’s words, had led his family to financial ruin. Initially, this explanation seemed fantastical, but the investigation that followed revealed that both Abe Shinzō himself and many other Japanese politicians had been maintaining connections with the Unification Church for many years. This caused an uproar in Japanese society, especially given the rather controversial reputation of the Unification Church. On January 26, 2023, the Association of Japanologists and the research laboratory “Center for Japanese, Korean, and Mongolian Studies” of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO University) held a roundtable “Unification Church in Japan as a Sociocultural and Political Phenomenon”. The participants of the roundtable analyzed the situation around the Unification Church and its role in Japanese politics in detail, studied the specific features of the “new religions” in Japanese society, and considered the factors determining their influence on the political world of Japan.
About the Authors
D. V. Streltsov
MGIMO University;
Institute of China and Contemporary Asia of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Streltsov Dmitry V., Doctor of Sciences (History), Professor, MGIMO University; Leading Research Fellow, Institute of China and Contemporary Asia of the RAS
76, Vernadskogo Av., Moscow, 119454;
32, Nakhimovsky Av., Moscow, 117997
K. O. Naka
International Media Group Rossiya Segodnya
Japan
Japan
Naka Ksenia O., International Media Group Rossiya Segodnya, Head of Japan Office
Tokyo
V. V. Nelidov
MGIMO University;
Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Nelidov Vladimir V., PhD (History), Associate Professor, Department of Asian and African Studies, MGIMO University; Research Fellow, Center for Japanese Studies, Institute of Oriental Studies of the RAS
76, Vernadskogo Av., Moscow, 119454;
12, Rozhdestvenka Str., Moscow, 107031
K. O. Sarkisov
Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Sarkisov Konstantin O., PhD (History), Leading Researcher, Center for Japanese Studies
12, Rozhdestvenka Str., Moscow, 107031
V. N. Dobrovolsky
Diplomatic Academ
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Dobrovolsky Vasily N., Adviser at the Institute of Contemporary International Studies, Diplomatic Academy; Minister Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary the First Rank
4, Bolshoi Kozlovsky Per., Moscow, 107078
I. P. Lebedeva
Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Lebedeva Irina P., Doctor of Sciences (Economics), Chief Researcher, Center for Japanese Studies
12, Rozhdestvenka Str., Moscow, 107031
I. A. Romanova
Lomonosov Moscow State University
Russian Federation
Russian Federation
Romanova Irina A., PhD (History), Associate Professor, Department of Economics and Economic Geography of Asian and African Countries, Institute of Asian and African Countries
11, Mokhovaya Str., Moscow, 103009
Review
For citations:
Streltsov D.V., Naka K.O., Nelidov V.V., Sarkisov K.O., Dobrovolsky V.N., Lebedeva I.P., Romanova I.A. Roundtable “Unification Church in Japan as a Sociocultural and Political Phenomenon”. Japanese Studies in Russia. 2023;(1):111-129. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.55105/2500-2872-2023-1-111-129
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