The fatal shooting of former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe by the son of a follower of the Unification Church has brought increased attention to the issue of Japanese parents who force their children to adhere to religious faiths through psychological or even physical abuse.

In some cases, these so-called "second-generation" followers of what many describe as religious cults say they are forced to not only blindly follow their parents' religious beliefs from a young age, but also to endure financial hardship or curbs on their freedoms.

The issue tends to be glossed over by Japanese society as a private problem, and some children find themselves in dire situations in which it is virtually impossible to speak their minds because of their broken parental relationships.