Sasakawa, a Respected War Criminal by Denis Boneau

笹川良一についての記事の一部 Sasakawa, a Respected War Criminal
by Denis Boneau

On the other hand, in 1963 Sasakawa became the main advisor of Reverend Sun Myung Moon. He encouraged the expansion of the Church of the Unification (Moon sect) . With Moon and Chang Kai Chek he founded the World Anti-Communist League (WALC), a result of the merger between the Anti-Communist League of the Asian Peoples (APALC) and the Anti-Bolshevik Nations Bloc (ABN). The organization, that brought together the extremist factions of the Taiwanese, South Korean and American secret services, was behind military interventions in South America and Asia. Sasakawa facilitated the coup d’état against Indonesian leader Sukarno and supported Philippine dictator Marcos through a mutual assistance association.

Philanthropy according to Sasakawa

The political leverage of Ryoichi Sasakawa, combined with his mafia activities, allowed him to build a huge empire with the consent of the US authorities. Thus, he immersed himself in a philanthropic career, investing part of his fortune in a foundation, the richest before the powerful Ford Foundation. He, who was proud of being «the richest fascist of the world» never hid his desire of obtaining, like his friend Jimmy Carter, the Nobel Peace Prize, but he had to content himself with the Helen Keller International Award, the Linus Pauling for Humanitarianism and the Peace medal granted by the United Nations.

The budget of the Foundation hides the dark past of its founder and attracts numerous leaders of international organizations, frequently linked with the United Nations, eager to obtain funds for their projects. The United Nations environmental award, the Sasakawa health award and the United Nations award for the prevention of catastrophes vouch for the efforts of the yakusa godfather.

In February 1978, by means of his naval construction foundation, he transfered half a million dollars to the United Nations and, in 1979, a million dollars to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), thus becoming the most important sponsor of the UN institutions. However, this generosity had another face. The Sasakawa clan, Ryoichi and his three sons) tried to control the organizations that receive their donations.

In 1999, when the election of an Egyptian lawyer ahead of UNESCO seemed definite, African representatives voted against their candidate and guaranteed the election of Japanese diplomat Matsuura. All the indications were that the Sasakawa Foundation promised «donations» in exchange for the votes of the African delegates. In 1993 and 1996, two internal reports of the United Nations already demonstrated the irregularities in the election of another Japanese man with few scruples, Hiroshi Nakajima [11], at the head of the World Health Organization (WHO)

 Once more, the Sasakawa clan was accused of organizing corruption. Nakajima, in recognition, erected a statue of his benefactor Sasakawa in the lobby of the WHO in Geneva. The powerful Japanese foundation, main private donor of the WHO, knew how to become indispensable: in 1996 it deposited 10 million dollars for a program to fight leprosy.

The Sasakawa Foundation similarly co-sponsored, along with the Jimmy Carter Foundation, the “Sasakawa-Global 2000”, a farming program directed to ten African countries . A close friendship between the former US president and the Japanese godfather was the origin of this philanthropic collaboration. In France, an «affiliate» of the Foundation was declared a public entity in 1990. It financed the Institute of East Asia of Lyon , the festival of Aix in Provence, the Guimet museum, concerts of the Chatelet Theater and activities linked to the National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS).