Adachi ward office sets up task force to deal with AUM

Japan Policy & Politics, July 26, 1999

TOKYO, July 19 Kyodo

The municipal office of Tokyo's Adachi Ward, where AUM Shinrikyo has located extensive facilities, held the first meeting of its task force Monday aimed at easing the anxieties of residents who feel threatened by the religious cult's presence. Tsunetoshi Suzuki, the ward chief and task force head, said his government will study ways to deal with the cult and seek cooperation from the central government, ward residents and other organizations concerned. About 180 cult members are believed to be living in the ward. The area is also home to the cult's head office, including its decision-making and public relations divisions, and an assembly plant for personal computers. Moreover, a number of AUM followers live in the ward because a detention center holding AUM leader Shoko Asahara is nearby. Asahara, whose real name is Chizuo Matsumoto, has been detained while on trial for various crimes including the 1995 Tokyo subway gassing which killed 12 and injured thousands. AUM's sales of personal computers, which totaled an estimated 7 billion yen last year, are seen as an important source of the cult's revenue. After the cult opened its key office in June last year, Adachi Ward residents began collecting signatures for a petition demanding the office's expulsion. They also asked the ward government and Tokyo metropolitan government buy the building. Suzuki, who became the ward chief after an election last month, made Adachi Ward a member of an anti-AUM liaison group made up of other local governments throughout Japan. He has also decided to refuse further residency registration to AUM members moving to the ward. The cult is currently facing an order to vacate the building that houses its central office. The building's owners were declared bankrupt July 8 and a court-designated lawyer, Saburo Abe, plans to soon demand the cult's eviction. AUM has plans of leaving the building but has had difficulties finding a place to move to, according to public security authorities. The central government is now considering new legislation to restrict AUM's activities. AUM's recent activities in various parts of Japan have sparked anxiety among local residents.