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Asahara, Aum Shinrikyo Cult, carried out the March 1995 subway sarine gas attack2004/03/12

A defendant Chizuo Matsumoto (Syoukou Asahara) of Aum Shinrikyou was sentenced to death. In the 13 cases which he was prosecuted for, 27 inocent people were killed and many victims have been suffering from aftereffect. He deserves to be a death sentence because he was convicted of a mastermaind of all cases.

Still,seven years and ten months since the first trial is too long. Not a few victims were dead before they knew the sentence. Although it is a unprecedent case, the delay is partly due to the change of the court-appointed attonies and inefficient trial. It can be said that the efforts of judges,prosecuters and attonies were insufficient. All concerned have to pursue why this case extended over a long period in order not to repeat this failure. They have to learn a lesson from this case.

Despite the long time it has taken, the truth has not come out. This seems to increase the unsatisfactory for the trial and empty feeling. It is a pity that the accused Matsumoto didn't express an excuse, to say nothing of an apology. All we can do is to expect him to change his mind.


Since the stage of investigation, the indictment for each crime has had priority. And the elucidation of the background of the case and the dark side of the religious group was one step behind. This is a big problem because it is far from the truth to conclude that it was due to the Asahara's greed or insanity or to guess by religious argument.

All in all, this incident was that the youngsters who were invited by charismatic character of Asahara and his faked supernatural power pretending religious retuals fell into group hypnotic trance and and were driven to terror acts. Although prosecutors pointed out that they intented to overthrow the goverment, the process that they acquired real estates, the oppotunity and aim that they began their armament, the reason that they advanced to Russia and whether someone behind Asahara existed or not, have not been clarified.

Experts have repeatedly pointed out the trend that youngsters who cannot find out the target of their passion are easily invited to religious groups or cultic groups. Unless we build the society with full of dream and hope, the risk of the reoccurance of this incident won't go out.

*Shokou Asahara's Aum Shinrikyo Cult did a sarin nerve gas attack on the Tokyo subway system, which killed 12 people and injured more than 5500 march 20,1995.This is one of the first cases that poison nerve gas was used in a terror attack against inocent people without military purpose.