Press translations [Japan]. Editorial Series 0071, 1945-12-08.

Full Translation:

At the very time when trouble is arising due to the war responsibility resolution in the Diet, and the committee for the Investigation of War Responsibility has not yet begun its investigations, the Allies arrested 59 more persons as war criminals. Henceforth, many more persons are expected to be arrested. Of course it is unpleasent for us, but we must bear it patiently, since the reconstruction of a new JAPAN cannot be attained if we avoid this problem of war responsitility. The people, as a whole, do not know the inside facts of the wax. To determine war responsibility is necessary in order that future politicians avoid the same mistakes.

How was the despotiom of the soldiers and bureacrats possible? How can we treat it hereafter? Who or what party is suitable for future leadership? We desire to know about such matters. It was natural that the whole Nation exerted itself to carry on the war. But the responsibility of the general public can be atoned for by the hardship they are suffering now. While we are willing to bear it, we are indigneant over the oppression of a certain class during the war. We believe that narrow, egotistic, exclusive ways of thinking give rise not only to war, but to every social evil, and that leaders who think along these lines should be replaced by those who love peace, construction, and progress. If they are replaced by the same bigots, reconstruction cannot be accomplished. The investigation of war responsibility must be thorough.

Extracts:

It is regretable to hear that the only means of saving the people from starvation is the importation of rice. Nevertheless, I think the is another means. That is, to make the people eat flour made from rice, wheat, barley and all other cereals. Rice, wheat and barley especially should be made into flour together with its chaff or husks. If rice were made into flour with chaff, it increases twofold in volume. Then, the estimated rice crop will increase in volume from 46 million hoku to 92 million hoku, and the flour of the other cereals can be distributed to the people as an extra ration.

Extracts:

SAKA Gyostun said: "The staffs of the coal mines are very tyrannical

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ITEM 3 (Continued)

and their behavior is very oppressive and menacing towards the coalminers. When a miner dies or is hurt accidentally in the mine, the staff blames him for his carelessness and does nothing for him. They have even been known to force sick miners to work by threatening them. The meals even are insufficient for a man to work as a miner. The emancipation of miners from their present state of slavery is most fundamental in the solution of the coal shortage."

AYARE, Goji, a student said: "Laborers have been hitherto considered as ignorant and low-grade. But let us learn the sacredness and purity of labor. Do not exploit laborers. Let their lives be made easier in all ways, hygienically and intellectually. Let us, the educated men, take the lead in engaging in mine labor."

SUDA, Kyonosuke, a student said: "There are many help wanted advertisements for coal-miners, But those advertisements impress us with the feeling that the people can not rely upon the upper classes or the trustworthiness of advertisements. Therefore, let the miners who are actually working in the mines speak to us and say, 'Our mine is so and so, you need not worry about food and housing. If you want to come to our mine, call at such and such a place'. If we only can hear the real voices, we, the unemployed, will willingly go anywhere."

It is said that any criminal who runs away to a mine is never arrested by the police. The unemployed know this well. This spying must be denied as an unfounded rumor. Let the mines be places where people can work freely and pleasantly. A great many people would then go to the mines, even if they were not supplied with five go of rice, or paid high wages.

Full Translation:

In order to tide over the food crisis which now confronts JAPAN, complete delivery of agricultural products must be made by farmers to the Government and a large quantity of food must be imported from abroad. Therefore, it is the Government's most important duty to exert its utmost effort in dolving the food problems. However, to our regret, the Government authorities seem to lack enthusiasm in this respect, and the measures taken by them are, as is often the case, undeniably inadequate.

The quota of food to be marketed by the farmers for the current year is thirty million koku. Of the estimated rice crop of 46,600,000 koku, the delivery of 30,000,000 koku is demanded. Therefore, it goes without saying that this task is weighing heavily upon the farmers. The reason why farmers are now unwilling to deliver farm products may be fundamentally attributed to the fear prevailing among them that they can not live if they deliver so much in this year of short crops. Therefore, the so-called "synthetic delivery system", which permits farmers to deliver unutilized food together with rice, will play as important role in carrying out the current year's delivery, Because the system in question shows a new domain of food resources to be developed in farming communities, it relieves farmers of the prevailing unrest which they have, regarding their own food.

If so, what is the real state of farming communities in this respect today? The items of unutilized foodstuffs to be gathered to substitute

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EDITORIAL SERIES: 71 (Continued)

ITEM 4 (Continued)

for rice are the leaves and stems of sweet potatoes, mulberry leaves which remain unpicked, various edible sea-weeds etc. Among these, most of the leaves and atoms of sweet potatoes which are out of season are now buried in the ground as fertilizer, and fallen mulberry-leaves are left scattered somewhere on the farms, so that there remains nothing to be delivered as substitutes for rice now.

We can point out two errors committed by the authorities in mapping out their program. The first is the man-power question regarding the rice substitutes to be delivered and the second relates to the equipment to handle the rice substitutes. The time when the leaves and stems of sweet-potatoes and mulberry leaves which remain left unpicked are to be delivered is the busiest season of the year for farmers, when they must hurry the digging of potatoes and the sowing of wheat. If the authorities want a smoother delivery to be made at this the busiest time of the year, it is necessary for them to take this fact into consideration and to lend a hand. However, the vital cause for the failure of the current year's delivery must be attributed mainly to the shortage of large-sized desiccators and grinders. In regard to the grinders, the Food Control Board authorities revealed that "at first they planned to make five thousand of them by March next year, but changed their plan to make eight thousand by February. However, they have managed to produce up to this day only thirty and they are now intending to produce two hundred. In the face of the fact that even the production of machines necessary for making edibles of unutilized food resources is progressing as slowly, the Government authorities continue to demand that farmers hurry their delivery of rice substitutes. What a force!

The delivery of unutilized food to be substituted for rice must be regarded as important in the sense that the food in question is not only a rice substitute, but food for farmers themselves and that it will be a vital factor in pushing the farmers' delivery of rice. It is necessary for the authorities to hurry the production of large-sized desiccators and grinders before they develope among farmers the gathering of wild herbs for the purpose of their subsidiary businesses, in anticipation of the forthcoming idle sesson. The authorities should be fully aware how meaningless is the policy which only orders without supporting these orders.

Full Translation:

The Agrarian Reform Bill, important topic of discussion in the present Diet, was finally introduced into the plenary session of the Diet on 5 December. The public, greatly concerned over this drastic reform, expects either a speedy passage of the bill or its shelving, since only ten more days remain in this session. In accordance with this, NISHIKAWA, Teiichi, a Progressive, interpellated Premier SHIDEHARA at the outset as to the Premier's intentions for the bill's passage, even if it meant extending this session. Premier SHIDEHARA answered that he expected a speedy conclussion of the debate in which he incidentally, showed a lack of interest in the reform measure. We are doubtful, therefore, of the Premier's good intentions to carry out the plan.

On the other hand, ISHIZAKA, Shigeru, and AKOJMA, Shunji, both Progressives, expressed their opinions that although they recognized

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the essential necessity for this reform this is not the proper time to put it into effect, due to the current economical instability and imperfections in the bill. The opposition, because of imperfections in the bill, may seem to have a reason for delay, but nevertheless, the reform is urgently needed to overcome the present crisis.

History shows us that reform has been born of confusion, and the present bill may well be said to be born of confusion. However, the polices of political parties are not based on divergent opinions. The truth is that the present members are dissatisfied with this reform, and they dare not make open opposition, and so, adhering to trivialities, thy try to make us feel that there are glaring defects in the bill.

Though the keynote of this reform is the establishment of peasant proprietors, the bill became the object of dispute because payment of farm rent, in money, is unfavorable to land-owning farmers. We cannot predict the state of the villages after the reform, but we know that there will be drastic changes because of shifting of ownership and new conditions. Despite this fact, the members of the Diet are still discussing land reform on the basis of the present situation. This clearly reveals their old-fashioned way of thinking.

Judging from the supply of rice held by producers, if delivery 30,000,000 koku of rice to the Government was realized the remainder of the total expected, that is 43,000,000 koku, will be less than that of last year. The Premier should have made this clear.

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