According to Asahi:
The General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon), the main pro-North Korea organization in Japan, is rapidly losing its tax-exempt status on facilities throughout the country.
On Wednesday, the government released the property tax collection practices for Chongryon-related facilities at 130 local governments throughout Japan.
According to officials of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, no local governments completely exempt Chongryon from paying property taxes on its facilities.
Kushiro in Hokkaido ended its total property tax exemption last fiscal year. It was the last community to grant Chongryon a complete tax exemption. The ministry began its annual surveys in fiscal 2005.
Other municipalities have also toughened property tax collection on Chongryon-related facilities.
Nagoya ended its partial exemption, while the cities of Kyoto, Okayama, Kiryu in Gunma Prefecture and Nishinomiya in Hyogo Prefecture, all effectively raised property taxes on Chongryon facilities.
There are now 94 local governments that no longer reduce property tax amounts for Chongryon facilities, while 30 still have a partial exemption. The remaining six local governments are reviewing their tax policies for the organization.
Local governments previously exempted property taxes on Chongryon’s headquarters and local chapters on the grounds that those facilities were of a public nature.
However, local governments began reviewing their practices after the Supreme Court declared a tax reduction measure by the Kumamoto city government illegal in November 2007.
Among other things, Chongryon serves as North Korea’s de facto embassy in Japan.
Read the full story here:
Pro-North Korea group losing tax breaks
Asahi Shimbun
8/13/2010
