Press translations [Japan]. Social Series 0192, 1946-01-23.

Full Translation:

Crimes are becoming complicated, and criminals are becoming skillful of late. To meet this situation, the adoption of scientific methods are necessary for arresting burglars, robbers, and other criminals. Wireless telegraphy will be used in the metropolitan areas.

Because many wire facilities were destroyed in the air raids, the Metropolitan Police Board has studied the utilization of wireless telegraphy for the purpose of arresting criminals. Receivers have already been installed in 55 police stations within the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Police Board, and all other police stations will seen be equipped with receivers. The ideal is that each police-box should have a receiver, but its realization will require a considerable time. Consequently, motorcars equipped with wireless telegraphy will be used to deal with emergency criminal cases. A motorcar equipped with wireless telegraphy is to be tested immediately by the Metropolitan Police Board.

Full Translation:

The distribution of food has been stopped in SAPPOSRO-Shi, HOKKAIDC, since 25 November last year. To tide over this critical situation, a civilian committee for the management of food was organized by five representatives of the citizens and thirty representatives of factory workers on 28 December. The committee purchased abundant supplies of rice at 350 yen a bale from the farmer's committees in the neighboring villages and distributed it to the citizens from 31 December on.

Summary:

How will the heads of neighborhood group associations and village associations be selected? What is the future of the Home Guard (KEIBODAN)? These problems are most important matters for promoting the democratization of the internal system of our country. However, no attention is paid to them by the Government nor by the Nation.

Democratization, of course, must be attained by the effort of the Nation itself. However, in these days when the majority of people ii not know the real sense of democracy, and the activities to enlighten those people are not vigorous, suitable leadership should be given by the Government. In TOKYO, an election to select the head and other officials of neighborhood group associations is now underway. However, citizens in general are not giving this special attention.

SOCIAL SERIES: 192 (Continued)

ITEM 3 (Continued)

TAKAMI end OGAWA, officials at the Home Ministry, said, "The Home Ministry” has nothing to do with details regarding the methods of democratizing neighborhood group associations, and the village associations, but the Provincial Government Office will handle them. We thought those problems would be decided upon in accordance with actual circumstances in the various provinces. In fact, the general public has given no special attention to the election of the head of the neighborhood group associations, thus showing their lack of social training.

"In the meantime, the mission of the Home Guard ended with the termination of the war, and it will be disbanded, but, it is necessary to form a new fire-brigade system."

Summary:

A movement for the democratization of medicine - a signal for reform of the medical system - is going to spread all over the country, taking advantage of the re-election of office-holders of the JAPAN Physicians' Society to be held on 1 February. The dissatisfaction of medical circle with the Sanitary Bureau of the Welfare Ministry and the Medicine Control Association has been the cause of complaints and trouble during and even after the war. The movement has come to the fore stimulated by cries against physicians' selfishness and for the reform of the medical system; it is now attracting attention from all directions.

The JAPAN Physicians' Society has taken up four points for the democratization of medicine: First, the reform of the system of medicine distribution. The distribution of medicines has been carried on by the Medicine Control Association since its inauguration in 1942. As no physician is allowed to participate in the management of the Association despite repeated demands, it is an organization of producers, utterly obvious to the consumers attitude. All the necessary materials production rights, and distribution rights are kept in the hands of the Ministry of Welfare, which is responsible for the present total stoppage of medicine distribution. The actual state of affairs is that the allotment for the fiscal year which should have circulated according to the plan of the said Ministry, has not yet been distributed.

On the regular route from the Medicine Control association to local distribution stations and then to town druggist or physicians, medicines go astray, to be sold on the black-market. For example, 500 yen is paid for one injection of dextrose and more than 100 yen for one pound of bicarbonate of soda. Physicians are of the opinion that the fundamental solution for the reform of the medical system lies in the complete unification of the Ministry Welfare, the Medicine Control Association, and druggists and physicians. Moreover, the Physicians Society is planning to establish a new medicine manufacturing company, but as some difficulty seems to be in the way of its realisation, the establishment of a consumers' society is now being planned by the Society.

Second the fundamental reorganization of the social health insurance system is necessary. The current system is too troublesome; so much so that physicians are occupied by the issurance business for at least five days a month. Physicians are aiming at participation in the contr[illegible]of the Insurance Bureau and the increase of medical treatment fees to meet the fivefold increase in the price of medicine.

Third the revision of the Medicine Law and the Medical Treatment Law, promulgated during the war, is demanded.

The fourth item is the democratization of the Medical Treatment Foundation system organized during the war. The former aims at changing laws enforced for the purpose of making strong soldiers, to laws for protection the Nation and promoting its welfare; the latter airs at the active functioning of the system by liberating it for popular utilization, In view

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SOCIAL SERIES: 192 (Continued)

ITEM 4 (Continued)

of the existing difficulty which the general public has in receiving proper medical care. The capital of this Foundation amounts to 400,000, 000 yen, of which 100,000,000 comes from government financing while the remainder is supplied by public bonds with four per cent interest. Hence it is now monopolized by a clique of rich people.

Summary:

While the various existing political or economic systems in JAPAN must be democratized, the university system is also to be drastically reformed. This reform must be attained on the basis of social criticism. The present corruption and inefficiency of universities are mainly due to social indifference to the state of affairs.

We can percieve the social indifference in the very fact that even the communist party, the severest of social critics, has been very lenient toward professors in their war criminal list. In institutions such as those for research, where no critical students attend, old abuses are still rampant. Here is an example:

In the TOKYO Imperial University, the former aviation Laboratory is going to be replaced by the Scientific and Engineering Research Institute They are quite different from each other. Some ex-members are very eager to keep their former membership in the new institute. We must remember that among these ex-members, there are many whose past actions have been very reprehensible. We demand strongly that those who made unnecessary drafts of personel, plotted to make the institute fascistic, and constituted an autocratic stratum in conspiracy with military factions, must leave their positions without any argument.

It is [illegible]to think that at this time an unimportant question about a single laboratory is negligible. Herein lies a fuse which will lead to a revolution in universities and finally set the whole educational system in a revolutionary blaze. Thus, I hope sincerely that society keeps a strict watch even upon the trivial problems of a laboratory attached to a university, in order to rebuild a new JAPAN. (Sent by Mr. KUMAGAYA, Seiichiro; Assistant professor at TOKYO Imperial University

Summary:

The Social Education Department of the Ministry Education, in order to enlighten mothers and enable them to bring up their children properly has decided on a plan to open a mothers' class in all the national school

The Ministry aims not only at heightening their culture and their self-confidence in the guidance of their children, but also at enlightening their political knowledge for the forthcoming general election. Mothers will be given lectures in their free time once a month. Their lessons will be on the domestic education of children, civic education, household management, and domestic science. Moreover, entertainment will also be provided for them.

Those who assume lecturing roles are to be trained in the Women's Higher Normal Schools or in the Normal Schools. Classes will begin before the end of March.

DISTRIBUTION "X"

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