Socialist thought in Imperial Japan
Encyclopedia
Left Socialist thought in Imperial Japan appeared during the Meiji period
, with the development of a large number of relatively short-lived political parties
through the early Shōwa period
. Left wing parties, whether advocating socialism
, Marxism
or agrarianism
provoked hostility from the mainstream political parties, oligarchs
and military alike, and many were either banned or went underground soon after formation. Although occasionally winning a seat in the lower house of the Diet of Japan
, left-socialist parties played little role in the government of the Empire of Japan
.
was introduced to Japan in the early Meiji period, largely via Christian
missionaries with their concepts of universal fraternity
, but had little attraction until the increased industrialization of Japan had created a disaffected urban labor force which became more receptive to calls for a more equitable distribution of wealth
, increased public services
and at least some nationalization
of the means of production.
The early Freedom and People's Rights Movement
founded in 1873 is also regarded as a forerunner to Japanese socialist development for its attraction to the labor movement and agrarian movement
and increased representative democracy
; however, it was more concerned with Constitution
al development than social consciousness.
The Meirokusha
think tank
, also founded in 1873 is also regarded as a forerunner to Japanese socialist development, due to the support of many of its members for social change.
and Sen Katayama
. It was reorganized in 1901 into Japan’s first socialist political party
, the . The government outlawed the new party two days after its formation.
The was founded on 28 January 1906 as a coalition representing a wide spectrum of socialist beliefs. The radical element was led by Toshihiko Sakai and Kotoku Shusui, who favored “direct action” and violent overthrow of the government, and moderates socialists led by Sen Katayama and Tatsuji Tazoe, who favored a mild program of social reform. The coalition was instable, and collapsed only after a year, on 22 February 1908. The various factions went on to create small, short-lived political parties, many of which came under police scrutiny and were suppressed under the increasingly restrictive Peace Preservation Law
s. The execution of Kotoku Shusui in the aftermath of the High Treason Incident
in 1911 was also a severe blow to the early socialist movement.
In 1920, Toshihiko Sakai and Hitoshi Yamakawa
attempted to reunite the various socialist splinter parties under the , and to join with various labor unions, intellectuals and anarchist
groups. Although the new organization quickly swelled to over 3000 members, irreconcilable differences in ideology meant that it could agree on little more than some basic propaganda
statements, and it was suppressed by the government in May 1921.
Other early socialist parties included: (1926-1928) (1926-1928) (1926-1932) 1919-1940 (1932-1940) (1937)
and Sakuzo Yoshino, both professors at Tokyo Imperial University. Both felt that the Emperor system and other elements of Japan's traditional kokutai
were compatible with democracy and socialism.
Yoshino went on to found his own political party with a mix of Christian socialism
, Confucian public morality
, and syndicalism
. Along with Tokuzō Fukuda of Keio University
, Yoshino joined with others to establish Reimeikai
which was a society "to propogate ideas of democracy among the people." This group was formed in order to sponsor public lectures. The movement initially attracted many students and worker leaders. The party collapsed in 1920.
branch of Comintern
by a group of socialist activists, including Hitoshi Yamakawa, Kanson Arahata, Toshihiko Sakai, Kyuichi Tokuda
and Sanzo Nozaka. Outlawed at once under the Peace Preservation Law
, the JCP was subjected to repression and persecution by the military
and police
.
The party was dominated by Hitoshi Yamakawa in its early years, but Yamakawa had the party formally dissolved in 1924 in an attempt to create a legal political party
to approach the Japanese working class
. Also in 1924, Kazuo Fukumoto returned to Japan after studying Marxism
in Germany
and France
, and scathingly attacked Yamakawa's approach, citing a need for the formation of a vanguard party along Leninist
ideals. He presided over the re-establishment of the JCP in 1926. The basic difference between Yamakawa and Fukumoto was a difference of opinion on the historical stage of Japan's development per Marxist terminology. Yamakawa saw Japan as still primarily a feudal state, which had yet to reach the state of capitalism
required for the proletariat revolution, whereas Fukumoto felt that the feudal stage had ended with the Meiji restoration
and that Japan should now be viewed in the same light as other western, industrialized nations.
On 15 July 1927, Comintern issued a thesis attacking both Yamakawa and Fukumoto and demanding that the party strive for an immediate two-stage revolution to overthrow the Japanese government, and especially the Emperor system and Diet of Japan
, redistribution of wealth and favorable policy with Soviet Russia
.
In the March 15 Incident
of 1928 and April 16 Incident of 1929, thousands of suspected communists were arrested nationwide. In a special open trial of the Tokyo District Court
in 108 sessions from 25 June 1931 to 2 July 1932, some 300 members of the JCP were sentenced. The trial was carefully orchestrated by the Home Ministry (Japan)
to expose the inner workings of the JCP and its strategy to undermine the existing political order. All defendants were found guilty and were given stiff sentences, but those who publicly recanted (tenko
) their communist ideology and who agreed to “rehabilitation” were given much reduced sentences.
In 1931, the underground JCP issued a new thesis calling for an immediate socialist revolution. This radical approach led to a fracturing of the JCP leadership, attacks from social-democrats, and more repression from the government. Overseas aid from Comintern not forthcoming (the JCP suspected of being infected with Trotskyism
by its Soviet counterparts), the Japanese communist movement virtually ceased to exist after 1935 with the arrest of its leadership and dissolution of supporting organizations.
Meiji period
The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
, with the development of a large number of relatively short-lived political parties
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
through the early Shōwa period
Showa period
The , or Shōwa era, is the period of Japanese history corresponding to the reign of the Shōwa Emperor, Hirohito, from December 25, 1926 through January 7, 1989.The Shōwa period was longer than the reign of any previous Japanese emperor...
. Left wing parties, whether advocating socialism
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
, Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
or agrarianism
Agrarianism
Agrarianism has two common meanings. The first meaning refers to a social philosophy or political philosophy which values rural society as superior to urban society, the independent farmer as superior to the paid worker, and sees farming as a way of life that can shape the ideal social values...
provoked hostility from the mainstream political parties, oligarchs
Meiji oligarchy
The Meiji oligarchy was the name used to describe the new ruling class of Meiji period Japan. In Japanese, the Meiji oligarchy is called the ....
and military alike, and many were either banned or went underground soon after formation. Although occasionally winning a seat in the lower house of the Diet of Japan
Diet of Japan
The is Japan's bicameral legislature. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives, and an upper house, called the House of Councillors. Both houses of the Diet are directly elected under a parallel voting system. In addition to passing laws, the Diet is formally...
, left-socialist parties played little role in the government of the Empire of Japan
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...
.
Early development of leftist politics
The ideology of Western socialismSocialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
was introduced to Japan in the early Meiji period, largely via Christian
Christianity
Christianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
missionaries with their concepts of universal fraternity
Christian socialism
Christian socialism generally refers to those on the Christian left whose politics are both Christian and socialist and who see these two philosophies as being interrelated. This category can include Liberation theology and the doctrine of the social gospel...
, but had little attraction until the increased industrialization of Japan had created a disaffected urban labor force which became more receptive to calls for a more equitable distribution of wealth
Distribution of wealth
The distribution of wealth is a comparison of the wealth of various members or groups in a society. It differs from the distribution of income in that it looks at the distribution of ownership of the assets in a society, rather than the current income of members of that society.-Definition of...
, increased public services
Public services
Public services is a term usually used to mean services provided by government to its citizens, either directly or by financing private provision of services. The term is associated with a social consensus that certain services should be available to all, regardless of income...
and at least some nationalization
Nationalization
Nationalisation, also spelled nationalization, is the process of taking an industry or assets into government ownership by a national government or state. Nationalization usually refers to private assets, but may also mean assets owned by lower levels of government, such as municipalities, being...
of the means of production.
The early Freedom and People's Rights Movement
Freedom and People's Rights Movement
The was a Japanese political and social movement for democracy in 1880s....
founded in 1873 is also regarded as a forerunner to Japanese socialist development for its attraction to the labor movement and agrarian movement
Agrarianism
Agrarianism has two common meanings. The first meaning refers to a social philosophy or political philosophy which values rural society as superior to urban society, the independent farmer as superior to the paid worker, and sees farming as a way of life that can shape the ideal social values...
and increased representative democracy
Representative democracy
Representative democracy is a form of government founded on the principle of elected individuals representing the people, as opposed to autocracy and direct democracy...
; however, it was more concerned with Constitution
Constitution
A constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organization is governed. These rules together make up, i.e. constitute, what the entity is...
al development than social consciousness.
The Meirokusha
Meirokusha
The ' was an intellectual society in Meiji period Japan that published social-criticism journal Meiroku Zasshi .Proposed by statesman Mori Arinori in 1873 and officially formed on 1 February 1874, the Meirokusha was intended to “promote civilization and enlightenment”, and to introduce western...
think tank
Think tank
A think tank is an organization that conducts research and engages in advocacy in areas such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, and technology issues. Most think tanks are non-profit organizations, which some countries such as the United States and Canada provide with tax...
, also founded in 1873 is also regarded as a forerunner to Japanese socialist development, due to the support of many of its members for social change.
Socialism in the Empire of Japan
The , was founded in October 1896, with members included Isoo Abe, Kotoku ShusuiKotoku Shusui
, better known by the nom de plume , was a Japanese socialist and anarchist who played a leading role in introducing anarchism to Japan in the early 20th century, particularly by translating the works of contemporary European and Russian anarchists, such as Peter Kropotkin, into Japanese...
and Sen Katayama
Sen Katayama
Sen Katayama , born Yabuki Sugataro , was an early member of the American Communist Party and co-founder, in 1922, of the Japan Communist Party....
. It was reorganized in 1901 into Japan’s first socialist political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
, the . The government outlawed the new party two days after its formation.
The was founded on 28 January 1906 as a coalition representing a wide spectrum of socialist beliefs. The radical element was led by Toshihiko Sakai and Kotoku Shusui, who favored “direct action” and violent overthrow of the government, and moderates socialists led by Sen Katayama and Tatsuji Tazoe, who favored a mild program of social reform. The coalition was instable, and collapsed only after a year, on 22 February 1908. The various factions went on to create small, short-lived political parties, many of which came under police scrutiny and were suppressed under the increasingly restrictive Peace Preservation Law
Peace Preservation Law
The Public Security Preservation Laws were a series of laws enacted during the Empire of Japan. Collectively, the laws were designed to suppress political dissent.-the Safety Preservation Law of 1894:...
s. The execution of Kotoku Shusui in the aftermath of the High Treason Incident
High Treason Incident
The , also known as the , was a socialist-anarchist plot to assassinate the Japanese Emperor Meiji in 1910, leading to a mass arrest of leftists, and the execution of 12 alleged conspirators in 1911....
in 1911 was also a severe blow to the early socialist movement.
In 1920, Toshihiko Sakai and Hitoshi Yamakawa
Hitoshi Yamakawa
was a Japanese socialist intellectual from the Meiji Era. A member or an elite family of writers and thinkers of the Meiji Era, he became interested in socialism while still in his hometown of Okayama. in 1900, he penned an article printed in the magazine "Seinen no Fukuin" (December 20, 1880 -...
attempted to reunite the various socialist splinter parties under the , and to join with various labor unions, intellectuals and anarchist
Anarchism
Anarchism is generally defined as the political philosophy which holds the state to be undesirable, unnecessary, and harmful, or alternatively as opposing authority in the conduct of human relations...
groups. Although the new organization quickly swelled to over 3000 members, irreconcilable differences in ideology meant that it could agree on little more than some basic propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
statements, and it was suppressed by the government in May 1921.
Other early socialist parties included: (1926-1928) (1926-1928) (1926-1932) 1919-1940 (1932-1940) (1937)
Centrist socialist thought in the Empire of Japan
Centrist socialism was centered around the writings of Minobe TatsukichiMinobe Tatsukichi
was a Japanese statesman and scholar of constitutional law. His interpretation of the role of the monarchy in the pre-war Empire of Japan was a source of considerable controversy in the increasingly radicalized political environment of Japan in the 1930....
and Sakuzo Yoshino, both professors at Tokyo Imperial University. Both felt that the Emperor system and other elements of Japan's traditional kokutai
Kokutai
Kokutai is a politically loaded word in the Japanese language, translatable as "sovereign", "national identity; national essence; national character" or "national polity; body politic; national entity; basis for the Emperor's sovereignty; Japanese constitution". "Sovereign" is perhaps the most...
were compatible with democracy and socialism.
Yoshino went on to found his own political party with a mix of Christian socialism
Christian socialism
Christian socialism generally refers to those on the Christian left whose politics are both Christian and socialist and who see these two philosophies as being interrelated. This category can include Liberation theology and the doctrine of the social gospel...
, Confucian public morality
Public morality
Public morality refers to moral and ethical standards enforced in a society, by law or police work or social pressure, and applied to public life, to the content of the media, and to conduct in public places...
, and syndicalism
Syndicalism
Syndicalism is a type of economic system proposed as a replacement for capitalism and an alternative to state socialism, which uses federations of collectivised trade unions or industrial unions...
. Along with Tokuzō Fukuda of Keio University
Keio University
,abbreviated as Keio or Keidai , is a Japanese university located in Minato, Tokyo. It is known as the oldest institute of higher education in Japan. Founder Fukuzawa Yukichi originally established it as a school for Western studies in 1858 in Edo . It has eleven campuses in Tokyo and Kanagawa...
, Yoshino joined with others to establish Reimeikai
Reimeikai
was a Japanese "educational society" formed in Japan's Taishō period. The members declared themselves committed "to strive for the stablization and enrichment of the life of the Japanese people in conformity with the new trends of the postwar world."...
which was a society "to propogate ideas of democracy among the people." This group was formed in order to sponsor public lectures. The movement initially attracted many students and worker leaders. The party collapsed in 1920.
Communism in the Empire of Japan
The (JCP) was founded on 15 July 1922, as an undergroundResistance movement
A resistance movement is a group or collection of individual groups, dedicated to opposing an invader in an occupied country or the government of a sovereign state. It may seek to achieve its objects through either the use of nonviolent resistance or the use of armed force...
branch of Comintern
Comintern
The Communist International, abbreviated as Comintern, also known as the Third International, was an international communist organization initiated in Moscow during March 1919...
by a group of socialist activists, including Hitoshi Yamakawa, Kanson Arahata, Toshihiko Sakai, Kyuichi Tokuda
Kyuichi Tokuda
was a Japanese politician and first chairman of the Japanese Communist Party from 1945 until his death in 1953.-Some of the Writing of Kyuichi Tokuda :At Revolutionary Democracy - External links :...
and Sanzo Nozaka. Outlawed at once under the Peace Preservation Law
Peace Preservation Law
The Public Security Preservation Laws were a series of laws enacted during the Empire of Japan. Collectively, the laws were designed to suppress political dissent.-the Safety Preservation Law of 1894:...
, the JCP was subjected to repression and persecution by the military
Kempeitai
The was the military police arm of the Imperial Japanese Army from 1881 to 1945. It was not an English-style military police, but a French-style gendarmerie...
and police
Police services of the Empire of Japan
The of the Empire of Japan, consisted of numerous police services, in many cases with overlapping jurisdictions.-History and background:During the Tokugawa bakufu , police functions were based on a combination of appointed town magistrates of samurai status, who served simultaneously as a chief of...
.
The party was dominated by Hitoshi Yamakawa in its early years, but Yamakawa had the party formally dissolved in 1924 in an attempt to create a legal political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
to approach the Japanese working class
Working class
Working class is a term used in the social sciences and in ordinary conversation to describe those employed in lower tier jobs , often extending to those in unemployment or otherwise possessing below-average incomes...
. Also in 1924, Kazuo Fukumoto returned to Japan after studying Marxism
Marxism
Marxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, and scathingly attacked Yamakawa's approach, citing a need for the formation of a vanguard party along Leninist
Leninism
In Marxist philosophy, Leninism is the body of political theory for the democratic organisation of a revolutionary vanguard party, and the achievement of a direct-democracy dictatorship of the proletariat, as political prelude to the establishment of socialism...
ideals. He presided over the re-establishment of the JCP in 1926. The basic difference between Yamakawa and Fukumoto was a difference of opinion on the historical stage of Japan's development per Marxist terminology. Yamakawa saw Japan as still primarily a feudal state, which had yet to reach the state of capitalism
Capitalism
Capitalism is an economic system that became dominant in the Western world following the demise of feudalism. There is no consensus on the precise definition nor on how the term should be used as a historical category...
required for the proletariat revolution, whereas Fukumoto felt that the feudal stage had ended with the Meiji restoration
Meiji Restoration
The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868...
and that Japan should now be viewed in the same light as other western, industrialized nations.
On 15 July 1927, Comintern issued a thesis attacking both Yamakawa and Fukumoto and demanding that the party strive for an immediate two-stage revolution to overthrow the Japanese government, and especially the Emperor system and Diet of Japan
Diet of Japan
The is Japan's bicameral legislature. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives, and an upper house, called the House of Councillors. Both houses of the Diet are directly elected under a parallel voting system. In addition to passing laws, the Diet is formally...
, redistribution of wealth and favorable policy with Soviet Russia
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
.
In the March 15 Incident
March 15 incident
was a crackdown on socialists and communists by the Japanese government in 1928. Among those who were arrested in the incident was Marxist economist Kawakami Hajime.-Background:...
of 1928 and April 16 Incident of 1929, thousands of suspected communists were arrested nationwide. In a special open trial of the Tokyo District Court
Tokyo District Court
is a district court located at 1-1-4 Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. -References:...
in 108 sessions from 25 June 1931 to 2 July 1932, some 300 members of the JCP were sentenced. The trial was carefully orchestrated by the Home Ministry (Japan)
Home Ministry (Japan)
The ' was a Cabinet-level ministry established under the Meiji Constitution that managed the internal affairs of Empire of Japan from 1873-1947...
to expose the inner workings of the JCP and its strategy to undermine the existing political order. All defendants were found guilty and were given stiff sentences, but those who publicly recanted (tenko
Tenko
Tenko may refer to:*Tenko , a BBC television drama*Princess Tenko, a Japanese magician, upon whom the cartoon Tenko and the Guardians of the Magic was based...
) their communist ideology and who agreed to “rehabilitation” were given much reduced sentences.
In 1931, the underground JCP issued a new thesis calling for an immediate socialist revolution. This radical approach led to a fracturing of the JCP leadership, attacks from social-democrats, and more repression from the government. Overseas aid from Comintern not forthcoming (the JCP suspected of being infected with Trotskyism
Trotskyism
Trotskyism is the theory of Marxism as advocated by Leon Trotsky. Trotsky considered himself an orthodox Marxist and Bolshevik-Leninist, arguing for the establishment of a vanguard party of the working-class...
by its Soviet counterparts), the Japanese communist movement virtually ceased to exist after 1935 with the arrest of its leadership and dissolution of supporting organizations.