Sohei Miyashita
Biography. Miyashita was born in 1927. He worked at the Ministry of Finance as a budget examiner. He was a member of the Liberal Democratic Party and served in the House of Representatives for seven terms. He was appointed director general of the Japan Defense Agency on 5 November 1991, replacing Yukihiko Ikeda in the post. Miyashita served in the post until 12 December 1992 when Toshio Nakayama succeeded him in the post. He was appointed head of the Environmental Agency to the cabinet led by Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama on 14 August 1994. Miyashita succeeded Shin Sakurai  in the post when the latter resigned from office due to his statements about the role of Japan in World War II. In August 1998, Miyashita was appointed minister of health and welfare to the cabinet headed by Prime Minister Keizō Obuchi. Then Miyashita was made chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party's tax panel. Miyashita died of pneumonia in Tokyo on 7 October 2013.