Once upon a time in Japan, a new religious sprang up under the guidance of a charismatic leader. It built sprawling facilities at the foot of Mt.Fuji and created its own kingdom, in which it appointed top leaders to such posts as the "Minister of Education," "Minister of Constuction," "Minister of Propaganda" and "Minister of Military Procurement." It engaged in scathing denunciations of rival religious groups. Member ran for seats in the Diet. Larege mometary offerings were an obligatory part of belonging. And disllusioned members bold enough to try and leave it were roughed up, threatened. followed on the street and subjected to a variety of harassment that resulted in numerous clashes with the law. If anyting, wirtes Shukan Jitsuwa, the number of incidents involving this group far surpasses the acts of the relative newcomer AUM Shinrikyo. The group's name is Soka Gakkai. The members of the "value-creationg society," whose unofficial numbers incorporate at least six million households in Japan, wrer shocked recently by the revelation that their Chairman Emeritus, Daisaku Ikeda, had been targeted for assassination by AUM's "Interrior Minister" Tomomasa Niimi. Before Niimi could go through with the attack, however he inadvertently exposed himself to the sarin he had intended to use on Ikeda and had to undergo emergency treatment.
Masatomo Yamazaki, a formal legal counselor for Soka Gakkai, tells Shukan Jitsuwa that comparisons between the two religious leaders reveal some remarkable parallels. "Asahara told AUM followers he was the 'last savior of the century' and 'the final sole suvivor'; to his adherents. Ikeda is the 'one true Buddha.' Both men are driven about in luxury limousines. Asahara's activities are administered by a 'Special Affairs department'; Ikeda's by the 'No.1 General Affairs section.' Both groups follow the practice of having believers consume the scraps left over from their leaders' meals. And close similarities can also be found in both men's tendency toward companionship and preoccupation with money." But that's not all. Shukan jitsuwa also notes that Soka Gakkai has also made efforts to extend its mission to Russia and other foeign countries, browbeats followers into making large donations. has attempted to cultivate academics and placed its spies inside government organizations. The scenes of police searching AUM facilities came as a major shock to Soka gakkai. Ikeda reportedly ordered his legal advisers to consider the implications that any new legislation may have on his group. Not surprisingly. Soka Gakkai is said to be totally opposed to revisions in the law, usin its political influence and other measures to block any passage. One side effect of the scrutiny directed towards AUM is that to avoid drawing further attention to itself. Soka Gakkai appears to be relaxiong its campaign against harrassment of priests and lay members of Nichiren Shoshu, the parent Buddhist sect that excommunicated Sokka Gakkai several years ago. Even more fearsome to Soka Gakkai than a nerve gas attack against its leader. Shukan Jitsuwa suggests, is a revision in the law governing the activities of religious bodies. The Buddhist lay group. it says, is likely to pull out all the stops to prevent such a move from taking place.
(Mainichi Daily News, Sunday, May 28, 1995) -----------------------------------------------------(引用ここまで)
-----------------------------------------------------(引用ここから) The deepening mystery of an assemblywoman's death 反創価学会の"闘士"女性市議が異常な「転落死」! (Shukan Hoseki 9/21)
"My mother could not possibly have committed suicide," insists 28-year-old Naoko Asaki. The Higashi Murayama Police announce they found no evidence of foul play in the death of city assemblywoman Akiyo Asaki. But Shukan Hoseki is inclined to agree with the daughter of the deceased that there are too many strange circumstances to support the conclusion of a simble suicide. Asaki, 50, headed an independent political group in the west Tokyo suburb called the "Grass-Roots Citizens' Club." She was elected to her third term in the city assembly last April. At around 10:30 p.m. on the evening of Sept. 1, she was discovered lying at the foot of a six-story apartment building from which she had apparently fallen. Still conscious and able to speak, she told the man who found her that she was all right and did not need an ambulance. She was taken on Defence Agency University Hospital and died shortly afterward from shock caused by massive bleeding. Asaki left no suicide note. More inexplicably, her shoes have yet to be found. They were not on her feet, nor were they anywhere in the building from which she supposedly fell. Atthe family's request, an official autopsy was performed at Jikei Medical University. Because no visible signs of a struggle were observed, the Higashi Murayama police have tentatively pronounced hte cause of death as suicide.
But, as Shukan Hoseki points out, a number of suspicious circumstances stand out. Thanks to a spate of articles in such magazines as Friday and Shukan Shincho. Asaki was already a nationally recognized figure: She was about to go on trial on charges of allegedly having shopliftd a 1,900 yen T-shirt from a local merchant on June 19 - charges Asaki vociferously denied. The charges, she insisted were part of a frame-up orchestrated by the powerful Buddhist lay group Soka Gakkai, whose presence in local goverment Asaki had actively opposed. Shukan Hoseki points out that Asaki was determined to fight the shoplifting charge in court and continue her campaign against involvement of religious organizations in politics. The article quotes several people who knew her as believing suicide was simply unthinkable. What is known so far fails to provide much in the way of an explanation. On the evening of Sep. 1, Asaki had been alone in her office, preparing a speech she was to give at a symbosiumj in Shikoku two days later. At around 9:15 she telephoned Hozumi Yano, her political protege. saying she "felt indisposed and was going to take a short rest." Yano thought her call somewhat odd: no noises could be heard in the background, and the manner in which Asaki spoke seemed strangely out of character. He returned to the office to make sure she was all right. The air conditioner and word processor had been left on, but Asaki was missing. Her family also became increasingly worried when she failed to return home. At around 2:40 a.m., while Naoko paced the street outside her house for news about her mother, she saw a suspicious middle-aged man seated in a van nearby. When she approached, he spoke to her in rude manner and told her, in a sardonic tone, that he was "waiting for someone." Ten minuetes later, the police telephoned Yano, who was still at the office, to inform him of Asaki's death.
From midsummer, reports Hoseki, Asaki had been subject to increasing harassment. On Aug. 10, she fell off her bicycle after someone apparently tampered with the brakes. Nine days later, her telephone pocket pager began displaying rows of fours, a number synonymous with death. On Aug. 20, a newspaper soaked in kerosene was found burning outside the gate of her house. She also received threatening telephone calls and letters. As a result, she had begun taking precautions, such as making the air and hotel reservations for her upcoming trip to Shikoku under an assumed name. The day before her death, Asaki stopped to chat briefly with a concerned neighbor. "Take care of yourself," the neighbor warned. "Don't worry." she replied in a nonchalant manner. "Surely nobody's going to kill me." Murder or suicide? For the present at least, no one has yet to provide a satisfactory explanation for the mysterious death of Higashi Murayama's controversial assemblywoman.
(Mainichi Daily News, Sunday September 10, 1995) -----------------------------------------------------(引用ここまで)