Mosque Built Without Permit Ordered for Removal in Kawagoe

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A mosque has been illegally constructed on privately owned land in Kawagoe, Saitama Prefecture. The building was erected without the required application or permits. Kawagoe City has issued corrective guidance to the landowner, a company linked to Pakistan, instructing it to remove the structure.

The city stated that it is not treating the case differently because it is a mosque. It stated, "This structure was built without the city's permission, and we are continuing guidance with the ultimate goal of its removal."

The site is in a rural area about five kilometers (3.1 mi) south of central Kawagoe City, surrounded by vegetable fields and residential neighborhoods.

According to the city's urban development division, the area is designated as an "urbanization control zone," where development is strictly restricted and construction requires permission under the City Planning Act.

The company has told the city that it will take appropriate steps toward removal and has submitted a remediation plan.

Ownership and Identification Challenges

The mosque, named "Japan Jaame Masjid Ramzan," is located in Shimo-Akasaka, Kawagoe City. A grand opening ceremony was held on April 3 and was reportedly attended by the Ambassador of Pakistan to Japan.

The city first became aware of the structure in October 2024 after receiving a report from local residents, by which time the exterior was already nearly complete.

Officials repeatedly requested that construction be halted. According to the city, workers claimed not to understand Japanese, and staff had to visit the site multiple times to explain that construction could not continue.

Because the building was unregistered and ownership was unclear, the city initially struggled to identify the responsible party. In March 2025, ownership of the land was transferred from a real estate company in Fujimi City, Saitama Prefecture, to a company headed by a Pakistani national based in Kawagoe City. That same month, the company submitted a remediation plan stating that it would proceed with removing the structure.

According to corporate registry records, the land is owned by a company represented by a Pakistani man who also serves as its president. The company's head office is located at the same address.

*Mosque built in violation of building regulations, May, Kawagoe City, Saitama Prefecture.*

Company President's Father

When contacted for an interview, the company's president said he was overseas. The request was then passed to his father, a Pakistani man in Japan.

In a telephone interview, the father said in fluent Japanese, "The building was already there before we bought the land. We are discussing plans to demolish it, but demolition also costs money, so it is difficult. Right now, we are talking with the city about what to do."

He also named Masaki Matsuzawa, head of a political research office in Saitama Prefecture, as the contact person for media inquiries. Matsuzawa has connections with the Pakistani community in western Saitama and attended the mosque's opening ceremony. He said he is "going out of his way" to support them in this matter.

Views on Community Management

In an interview, Matsuzawa explained that he interacts with foreign residents to help them understand Japanese norms and teaches them that "what is not acceptable is not acceptable."

He said the mosque is used by a multinational group of Muslim worshippers, including Pakistanis, Iranians, Egyptians, people from Dubai, various African countries, and Indonesians.

Matsuzawa emphasized that even if they were not aware the construction was illegal, it does not change the fact that it is illegal. He also noted that, for Muslims, mosques also function as community gathering spaces. They sometimes call in members who cause problems and admonish them not to trouble Japanese locals. Rather than being scattered, he suggested it may be better to bring them together and teach them cultural norms.

The city is currently instructing that it is not appropriate for an illegal building to host gatherings of unspecified members of the public, and is urging that Friday prayers and similar gatherings be held with smaller numbers where possible. It continues to negotiate with the Pakistan-linked company regarding restoration to the original state.

According to Hideyuki Kainuma, a Liberal Democratic Party city councilor in Kawagoe who is investigating the matter, even during Eid al-Adha on May 27, only a relatively small number of people gathered in the early morning.

According to research by emeritus professor Hirofumi Tanada of Waseda University, the number of mosques in Japan began increasing in the 2000s and had reached 164 across 140 municipalities nationwide as of July 2025. Another mosque in Kawagoe City opened in 2010.