Political Struggles and Settlements ofthe High-Growth Era1

Political Map in the early 1950s• Conservative Forces– Liberal Party (Yoshida Shigeru) led the peace treaty
and the US-Japan Security Treaty.
– Democratic Party (Hatoyama Ichiro) objected the“subordinate independence.”• Progressive Forces– Socialist Party (Left faction) sought a revolutionarytransformation of capitalism at home and opposed tothe partial peace treaty. .
– Socialist Party (Right faction) sought partial reform ofcapitalism and accepted the partial peace treaty.
– Communist Party lost popular confidence since they
took violent actions suggested by Stalin.
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1955• The two conservative parties merged to foundthe Liberal Democratic Party (LDP).
• LDP would remain in power in the following 38years.
– Business Leaders financially supported.
– The bureaucrats offered policy expertise andmanpower to the party. Leading midcareer
bureaucrats left their posts to run for political officeunder the LDP banner.

• The two factions of the Socialist Party reunited.
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Economic Policy Debate• Arisawa Hiromi and Tsuru Shigeto stressed thatJapan should develop natural resources (coaland hydroelectric powers) within it and minimize
interdependence, fearing foreign conflicts thatmight endanger oil supplies.
• Nakayama Ichiro argued that the only
sustainable choice for Japan was to join theglobal economy, by importing raw materials andexporting manufactured goods.
4Yoshida VS Hatoyama• The followers of Yoshida
Shigeru followed the American
lead in containing thecommunist bloc.
• Hatoyama and his allies sought
independence from US. They
succeeded in normalizing
relations with Soviet Union in1956 without Peace Treaty.
5Revision of the Constitution• Hatoyama and his faction scorned theconsitution as the coercively imposed“MacArthur Constitution.”• They wanted to raise the emperor’s status andabolish Article 9.
• In order to ratify any revision of the constitution,
the LDP need 2/3 of the Diet seats, and it failed.
• Gradually in 1960s, the drive to revise theconstitution lost momentum.
6Energetic Progressive Forces• Labor Unions.
• Anti-Nuclear Organization protested against theUS nuclear tests: In 1954 a Japanese fishingboat Lucky Dragon was showered withradioactive fallout from an American nuclear test
on Bikini Island.
• Zengakuren (All-Japan Federation of Student
Self-Governing Associations) was founded in1948. They were major progressive forces
throughout 1950s.
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The Anpo Revision• In the late 1950s, the revision of US-Japan
Security Treaty was a major agenda forthe conservative government.
• The US and Japan agreed on the revisionin early 1960 with:– American bases would protect Japan.
– Japan would accept US bases, help pay forthem, and help protect them in an emergency.
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The Anpo Struggle• Socialist and students groups
opposed to the nearly
permanent subordinate
independence underAmerican hegemony.
• On May 19, the Kishi
government called the Diet
into session and passed thelaw with a snap vote.
• After that night, hugeprotests took place daily inthe vicinity of the Diet.
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The Treaty Revised• US President Eisenhower planned to visit Japanto sign the new treaty.
• On June 10, his press secretary James Hagerty
arrived Japan. His car was surrounded by theangry crowd, and he was rescued by ahelicopter.
• On June 15, a young female student of Tokyo U(Kamba Michiko) was killed. Protesters blamedher death on police brutality.
• Eisenhower called off his visit at the last minute.
• Kishi resigned, but achieved his political goal.
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“Income Doubling Plan”• There was another major political protests in
Kyushu: The Mitsui Corporation’s Miike Coal
Mine in 1960.
• Since then the conservative government
deemphasized the drive for constitutional
revision and confrontation with unions.
• The result was a new politics of high growth ofthe economy.
• Prime Minister Ikeda Hayato launched the“Income Doubling Plan” to commit economic
growth to double GNP by 1970.
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New Conflicts and Protests• Behiren against the Vietnam War: The
movement blamed US for its imperialistic
intervention into civil wars in Asia.
– The protesters were afraid of Japan’s
involvement with the war, violating the article
9 of the constitution.
– They failed in generating a successful
movement in 1970 against the second
renewal of the US-Japan Security Treaty.
12Environmental Protests• Chemical pollution-related diseases
appeared in 1950s.
• Mercury poisoning struck and killedresidents in southern Japan (MinamataKumamoto) and northern Japan (Niigata).
• Other notable protests:– Air pollution (Mie)– Cadmium (Jinzu River-Toyama)
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Student Radicals• In late 1960s, university students, like theircounterparts the world over, were involved
with intense and often violent protests,• They protested increased tuition anddemanded a curriculum reform and their
participation to university governance.
• Zengakuren was divided through faction
conflicts into communist-like groups andnon-communist “new left.”14

Geba (Gewalt)• Helmeted demonstrators took
over class room buildings anddormitories.
• Conflicts in the University ofTokyo:– The Yasuda-Memorial Hall wasoccupied by helmeted students.
– Deans were taken captive bystudents.
– Maruyama Masao resigned.

• The government sent riot
police into campuses to retakecontrol.
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Struggle against Narita Airport• The government chose the site northeastof Tokyo for the construction of a newinternational airport.
• Farmers and student activists formed a
powerful alliance against the governmentpressure on farmers to sell the remainingland.
• Students saw the conflict as a chance toattack the arrogant bureaucratic state.
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“Progressive Local Government”• Citizens’ movements against
environmental pollution and/or US militarybases brought communist or socialist
politicians to power.
• Many of major cities and prefectures(Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Fukuoka) were
headed by mayors or governors of leftwing parties.
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Minobe Ryokichi• He was a former Marxist
economist, elected governor ofTokyo, and the most famous
progressive leader.
• He was the son of Minobe
Tatsukichi, the author of theemperor-as-a-state-organ
theory.
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Okinawa Returns• In 1968 the US president Lyndon Johnson
promised to return Okinawa to Japanesecontrol.
• In 1972, Okinawa returned to Japan.
• The US military continued to maintain ahuge presence on the island.

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