There were already two hearings in Tokyo District Court. First hearing was held on Mar. 22, 2011 followed by May 17 session. They were basically for submission of the documents and to determine the next hearing dates. (Next two sessions will be held on Aug.16 and Oct.11, 2011)
Goto (Plaintiff) submitted complaint, brief(preparatory writing) and statement. The defendants submitted defendant's answer to the complaint and statement.
Support Committee for Toru Goto't Court Case has published all the documents submitted to the court on its website. It includes the defendant's side documents. http://antihogosettoku.blog111.fc2.com/
I've decided to translate the documents uploaded in the Support Committee's website into English, so people in the world would know what's happening on the civil case.
Already many documents from both parties were submitted to the court. I skip some earlier submitted documents, and I've picked up the Goto's statement which should be one of the most important documents in the case.
Toru Goto's Statement - Part 1 (1 to 4 in the index below)
Index of the Toru Goto's statement
- Personal History
- Joining Unification Church (1986)
- First Confinement (Oct 1987 - Nov 1987)
- After Escape from First Confinement
- Second Confinement
(1) Confinement in Niigata (Sep 1995)
(2) Transferred to First Apartment in Tokyo (1997)
(3) Transferred to Second Apartment in Tokyo (Dec 1997)
(4) Miyamura's deprogramming work
(5) First Hunger Strike – 21 days
(6) Second Hunger Strike – 21 days
(7) Third Hunger Strike – 30 days
(8) Release from Prison - After Hospitalization
- At the End
Toru Goto's statement
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April 21, 2011
Kita-ku, Tokyo
1.
1. Personal History
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| Mr. Toru Goto |
I was born in Yonezawa-shi, Yamagata on Nov 2, 1963 as a 2nd son. My father was born on Nov 25, 1931 and deceased on June 22, 1997. My mother was born on Dec 10, 1932, currently 78 years old. I have an elder brother (born on March 28, 1961, currently 50 years old) and a younger sister (Feb 14, 1967, currently 43 years old)
I entered Oonoda Primary School of Musashino city in Tokyo. I was transferred to Hoya Daiichi Primary School of Hoya city in Tokyo, and graduated from the same in March 1976.
I entered Seiran Junior High School of Hoya city. I was transferred to Yachiyo Daini Junior High School of Yachiyo city in Kumamoto, and graduated from the same in March 1979.
I entered Hikawa Senior High School of Kumamoto in April 1979, and graduated from the same in March 1982.
I started the Architecture course at the Science and Engineering Department of Nihon University, and graduated from the same in March 1987.
I was employed by Taisei Construction Corporation in April 1987.
2.
2. Joining Unification Church
I was taken to a Video Center in Okachimachi, Tokyo accompanied by my brother when I was in the 4th year at the university. The center was called a Video Center which was operated by the followers of the Holy Spirit Association of the Unification of the World Christianity (Unification Church). My brother had already become a member of the church when he invited me to learn the teachings. I was not so keen to learn. But I gave in to my brother’s enthusiasm and commuted to the Video Center.
I learned the Divine Principle, which is the doctrine of the Unification Church via the video presentation and also by attending 3-day-seminar and 4-day-seminar.
At that time I was in the 4th year at University, soon to be a member of society, and such time should have been a time filled with hope. However, I felt depressed to hear of the wars, crimes or divorces. I didn’t like my selfishness and I was struggling as I could not find hope and value in life. I couldn’t talk to anyone about my internal suffering which had no definite answer. During the holiday at university, I used to meditate at a fasting center in Fujisawa city, Kanagawa.
The Divine Principle, which my brother introduced to me had a strong impact in my struggling situation. Existence of God, the purpose of the creation of God is realization of love and joy, the relationship between God and human being is parents and child, the cause of unhappiness and sin is caused by fall of man, human history is the history of restoration, and so on. The Divine Principle made me understand clearly the purpose and value of my life. It gave me hope when I was struggling in despair. It revived my dying soul to new life with uplifting joyfulness. I decided to join the Unification Church.
After attending the church seminars, I belonged to a university students’ organization called “Student Department”. I lived together with other members at the church center called “Home”. My brother witnessed my sister to the church. She was a college student. She learned the Divine Principle at the Video Center near her college, and she joined the church.
I graduated from the architecture course of the Science and Engineering Department of Nihon University in March 1987, and was employed by Taisei Construction Corporation in April 1987. I lived at the Okachimachi center (Home) and commuted to work.
3. 3. First Confinement
In 1987, deprogramming operations were frequently occurring influenced by mass media’s report. In May 1987, my brother was kidnapped, confined and he was forced into the deprogramming process when he was on his way to visit the parents home.
My brother said to me that his father met him on the way to his home. My brother thought “it’s very unusual that my father welcomes me on the way home.” And he was walking home with his father. As soon as father’s hand touched his body, father shouted “NOW”. Then strangers from a hiding place suddenly jumped out and attacked him, and pushed him into a waiting van.
When the van stopped at the train crossing, my brother jumped out of the window. Then he scuffled with father and his supporters. Someone reported to police, and they were taken to the police station. Though my brother claimed that he was kidnapped and asked for desperate help from the police, the police listened to his father and he was taken the confinement site in the car.
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| Deprogrammer - Takashi Miyamura |
One of the deprogrammers of my brother was Takashi Miyamura, who is a managing director of an advertisement company called Tap Co. Ltd. Later this Miyamura was involved in my 2nd kidnapping and confinement. At that time Miyamura coordinated with Christian minister, Satoshi Moriyama of Jesus Christ Church of Japan in Ogikubo, and the Ogikubo church became their base. They were asked by some parents to break their children's faith ofthe Unification Church.
Some parents were on a waiting list. And during the waiting period, the parents were trained the method of kidnapping, confinement and breaking faith. Miyamura organized a parents meeting called “Suikei Kai”. In the Suikei Kai, there was a system that the parents who were successful in deprogramming their children help the parents having a turn in kidnapping and taking children to the confinement room near the Okikubo Eiko Church, then Miyamura visited the confinement site for deprogramming purpose. Later I had a chance to look at the list, and I saw many parents names filled out. I heard that the last line of the waiting list is in a few hundreds.
After my brother left church, he became to support Miyamura to deprogram the church members. Also he was employed by Tap Co. Ltd., and my brother became Miyamura’s assistant. My parents request to deprogram me was almost at the far end of the list. My brother later said to me that the turn for my deprogramming became quicker by jumping the queue as my brother supported Miyamura’s deprogramming with enthusiasm.
At that time, I worried so much about my brother and even I couldn’t sleep at night as he went missing after he had gone home. I looked for him everywhere I could, from home to Christian church, which is said my brother stayed, but I couldn’t find him.
In Oct 1987, my father contacted me and said my brother wanted to see me, and told to come to Shinjuku. I worried that I would be kidnapped, so two Unification Church members (men) followed me. I followed my father to the Keio Plaza Hotel in Shinjuku. I got on an elevator, but the two men were separated. I was taken to a room in higher level. My brother was waiting, and said, "I’ve decided to leave the church. I want you to learn what I learned."
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| The room of the Shinjuku Keio Plaza Hotel |
I noticed that some work was done on the door of the room, so the door does not open from inside. Therefore I couldn’t go out to the hallway from the room. The hotel suite has 2 rooms adjacent each other and connected by a door. The entrance and exit to and from the suite was done through the next room. Of course the purpose of this arrangement was to prevent me from escaping. It was very shocking for me that my brother called me to the hotel to confine and deprogram me.
Soon after, Takashi Miyamura visited the room accompanying former Unification Church members. In one instance, Miyamura asked one of his men, “What is the existence of Sun Myung Moon for you?” The man replied, “Like this” pointing at the cigarette butts which heavy smoker Miyamura left in the ashtray. I can’t forget the sense of humiliation when the man ridiculed me by saying so. The man’s face was filled with insult. I was furious about the deceptive confinement and I locked myself in the toilet, and shouted, “Get me out of here. Help.” The door was opened from outside, and I got dragged out of the toilet. I scuffled with my father and brother, but I was outnumbered and they overpowered me.
While I was forced to listen to their critics against the church or church doctrine by Miyamaura and the former UC members, I got the urge to break the window by throwing a chair. I lifted a chair up, but I stopped short of doing it as I thought it may have hit the passersby. As I was forced to listen to the defamation against the church and the church founder, I experienced unbearable pain. After a few days later, I thought I was not able to get out if I kept the faith. And I pretended to abandon my faith against my will.
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| Ogikubo Eiko Church |
About a week later, I was taken to an apartment room in Ogikubo, Sugunami-ku from the Keio Plaza Hotel.I was confined in the apartment for almost a month. I had to attend the church service at the Ogikubo Eiko Chruch with constant supervision of my parents and brother. Also I was forced to visit the nearby apartment where a UC church member was confined for deprogramming purpose.
I wanted to help the church member in front of me who was suffering from the ongoing deprogramming process under the forceful confinement. But I had to give up my intention because I thought I had to go through more relentless confinement and deprogramming process if my pretension to leave church was discovered.
Many former UC members who left the church as a result of deprogramming by Miyamura and Moriyama were attending the meeting at the Ogikubo Eiko Church. Some members among them were actively supporting Miyamura’s deprogramming operations like my brother. At one time, I was forced to attend the Suikei Kai meeting held at a house just opposite side of the Ogikubo Eiko Church, and I witnessed one scene that the Miyamura was instructing parents how kidnapping and confinement could help children get out of the group.
In April of that year, I entered a company as a newly graduated employee, and assigned to the construction site in Funabashi, Chiba as a site supervisor. But I was kidnapped all of sudden, I could not contact the company. And I was not allowed to contact the company during the confinement and I was always under constant scrutiny. I was forced to be absent from the work for many weeks, and I felt pain to cause my company trouble.
Towards the end of November in 1987, I was looking for a chance to escape. When I attended the Sunday service at the Ogikubo Eiko Church, I ran away from the church building by pretending to go the toilet, and escaped to the Unification Church Center.
4. 4. After Escape from First Confinement
I was scared of another kidnapping attempt by my family after I returned to the center. I asked the church to transfer me to another department from the original department which my brother knew. I named “Yuuji Suzuki” and I could not tell my family where I was, and I was in hiding. When I saw a van sitting on the street, I was extremely fearful with the feeling that someone may have jumped out from a hiding place, attacked me and taken me to the van.
In fact, at that time, many Unification Church members were reported missing all of sudden. For 3 years from 1990 to 1992, 941 members went missing. 233 members out of 941 returned to the church. According to the survey of the 233 members, they were kidnapped and confined against their will in an attempt to break their faith. In 1992, only 1 year, there were 375 missing members. Average of more than 1 member were kidnapped and confined daily.
“Why do I have to be frightened with the fear like medieval witch hunt in modern Japan which guarantees the religious freedom?” While I lamented the situation, I had no relaxed time, fearing “I may be kidnapped today.”
I wished to go back to work for the company I joined in Spring. But if I went back to work, my family would know where I was. I couldn’t go back to work because of the fear that I may be kidnapped again. I had no other way than to resign the company, and I was involved in the church work such as witnessing or educational activities in the church community.
I worried about my sister at that time as my brother and myself were kidnapped in a row. And the worry came true. At the beginning of 1989, my sister was kidnapped and left the church. I was stung with remorse for a while after that because I could not protect her from coercive faith breaking.
My brother joined anti Unification Church movement which Miyamura organized after he left the church. He filed a law suit at the Tokyo District Court against the Unification Church so called “lost youth” case in 1991.
In August, I attended a church wedding ceremony of 30,000 couples held in Seoul, South Korea with a lady (Goto’s first fiancee) follower of the Unification Church. The wedding ceremony is the ceremony where we pledge that we will build a peaceful family with the eternal partner for the future, and of course it’s my desire. But my fiancee left the church after she went through a coercive faith breaking process done by her family.
Many months have passed since my first kidnapping/confinement. I was cautious for the chance of 2nd kidnapping, but I thought things would remain unsettled. I started to talk with my family over the phone, sent letters to them and gave presents on their birthdays. Around 1992, my father said to me , "I won’t do such a thing again." in an over the phone conversation. He promised not to do it again. Then I let him know where I was, and I was able to communicate with my family members while they opposed my faith of the Unification Church.
My brother married a woman in Jan. 1995. The brother's wife was a former Unification Church member, who was kidnapped and confined by her family members, deprogrammed by Miyamura and Yasutomo Matsunaga (Christian minister of Niitsu Church, Japan Alliance Christ Church). After she left church, she became involved with anti Unification Church activities, and she lodged a “lost youth” lawsuit at Niigata District Court in 1991.
I attend at the 360,000 couple's wedding ceremony in Seoul, South Korea with my 2nd fiancee. I was then 31 years old in Aug 1995. I was thinking of quitting the church work while keeping the faith of Unification Church and finding a job to prepare for married life and for the future. However I was kidnapped and confined again in Sep 1995, I could not find a job, and I could not start a married life with my fiancee.
---------------------------------Part 1 ends
* Picture are taken from http://antihogosettoku.blog111.fc2.com/
Link to other part of Goto's statement
Goto's Statement Part 1
Goto's Statement Part 2
Goto's Statement Part 3
Goto's Statement Part 4 (First Half)
Goto's Statement Part 4 (Second Half)
Goto's Statement Part 5
Goto's Statement Part 6
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