Evening star., 1952-06-19
Jopun's Economic Problem

In his New York speech the other night
Ekchi Araki, Japan's first postwar Ambassador
to the United States, made special point of en-
phasizing what is undoubtedly one of the most
pressing problems confronting his country in it's
new role as an equal member of the family Of
free nations.
This is the difficult problem of working out
an economic future in which the japanese will
be able to support themselves and play key
part in promoting the peace and prosperity of
Asia as whole. If they to do that, it is i'm
peratve, as Mr.. Araki has said, that they increase
and modernze their industrial establishment,
have access to raw materials, and be free to
compete fairly to find sales outlets for their goods
in world markets.
Although Japan has achieved an impressive
economic recovery since its devastating defeat in
the Second World War, it has succeeded in doing
so mainly because of vast sums of American aid.
1t has been propped up, too by the dollars it has
earned through the sale of services and supplies
to our armed forces engaged in the Korean war.
But the aid is no longer being advanced, and
when and if an armistice is reached at Panmun-
jom, the service -and-supply income will dwindle
away-an income that can be supplanted only in
minor part by what the United States will spend
in maintaining post-occupation bases and troops
in keeping with the Tokyo-Washington security
pact.
In such situation, now that the San Fran
cisco peace treaty has restored them to full Sow
ereignty, the Japanese have every reason to be
anxious about expanding their industry and
developing an export trade large enough to pay
for the imports they must have (food as we'll as
raw materials) to survive and prosper AS AM
bassador Araki has indicated, the difficulties they
face in that respect are particularly severe be-
cause their populaton-which during the past
decade has grown by Is million to total of about
IS nlillion-is continuing to increase at rate OF
is million a year. At the same time, despite
these fast-multiplying numbers, they no longer
have any territory outside their home Islands,
whose total area is approximately equivalent to
CALIFORNIA;. They have lost more than 40 per
cent of their prewar land posseSsions-a vast
overseas empire (including Korea and Manchu-
rial which used to be one of their big sources OF
supply and major sales outlet for their manu-
factured goods.
On top of all this, the Japanese are pledged
not to carry on anything more than a trickle OF
trade with aggression-bent Red China. What
this means is that they are committed against
doing business with country that took almost
Is per cent of their exports, and supplied them
with nearly the same percentage of their imports
in prewar days. Coupled with their population
growth and their loss of territory, this commit
ment quite obviously makes 1t v1tally necessary
for them to work out new pattern OF commerce
that will provide them with raw materials and
with international markets in which they will be
able to sell goods to earn the income needed to
buy those materials.
Against such background, it Is understand
able why Ambassador Araki has appealed to the
United States and like-minded nations to let his
country have fair and equal opportunity to pay
its own way in the world. In view OF the fact
that British and other Understanding GER
tain American businesses-have their knives out
against Nipponese competition of any kind, the
appeal is timely one Unless it is needed and
tariffs and similar restriction are kept within
reasonable bounds, Japan simply will not be able
to make the great contribution it is equipped
to make to the peace and economic well-being
of Asia.