Press translations [Japan]. Editorial Series 0090, 1945-12-14.
Date14 December, 1945
translation numbereditorial-0316
call numberDS801 .S82
Persistent Identifier
EDITORIAL SERIES: 90
ITEM 1 Enactment of Diet Law - Asahi Shimbun - 10 Dec 45. Translator: H. Furukawa.
Full translation:
The establishment of a democratic parliamentary system should never be temporized
by such measures as the revision or
modification of the Electoral Law, the Ordinance of the House of Peers, the House
Law, etc. The writer, therefore, proposes
the enactment of a new fundamental Diet Law which corresponds to on immediate revision
of the Constitution. The gist of the
proposed Diet Law will he itemized in the following paragraph and then the reasons
for the proposal will be explained.
- 1.The Diet Law to be enacted shall combine the contents of the existing House Law, Electoral Law, and Ordinance of the House of Peers, and aim at a complete revision covering all the provisions of these three laws.
- 2.The amalgamation of the three laws is based in two policies, namely, to prohibit arbitrary actions toward the members of the Lower House elected by the people by the members of the House of Peers, which is beyond the people's power. Also, to carry out an epoch-making revision of the Ordinance of the House of Peers which is obstructing the growth of democracy.
- 3.A unicameral system with two sections shall be established, All the functions of the Diet shall he performed in the presence of the members of both sections, as is the case with ceremonial occasions in the existing Diet. Only in the deliberation of bills, shall each section perform its activities individually.
- 4.Both sections shall he equal in competency. When both sections can not agree in their opinions, a joint committee system shall be set up.
- 5.As for the members of the two sections, one shall be elected by popular vote; the other shall be elected on the basis of corporations.
- 6.All people over 20 years of age shall have the franchise. Those who are over 25 years shall be eligible for election. No one shall be prohibited from voting except those who are incompetent to exercise their vote.
- 7.Corporative votes shall be given to the cities, towns and villages, and to economic and academic bodies legally recognized. The number of votes and voters shall be shared rationally among those franchized bodies.
- EDITORIAL SERIES: 90 (Continued) ITEM 1 (Continued)
- 8.The small electorate system shall be established in both elections. The elevation of the people's interest in the Diet shall be made through active campaigns and activities of the members of the Diet.
- 9.The number of members elected by the people shall be limited to 500 and the number of these elected by corporations to 250. The terms of the members of both groups shall be four years.
- 10.All the complicated and formal rules on election campaigning provided for in the existing penal regulations of the Electoral Law shall be abolished. Candidates shall be required to announce on his application the following facts: cost of the campaign; total number of canvassers; the names of at least five responsible persons for election canvassing; and, all the plans for canvassing including press, speeches and all other methods. In the case of those who falsify their own reports on the electioneering campaign, the campaigner, as well as the person elected shall be disqualified. In this way the Electoral Law can be simplified.
- 11.In the control of canvassing, a Prefectural Defence Group under the control of the constituency shall be established, and government interference shall be prevented accordingly.
- 12.The regulations of the popular election covering the ages of eligible persons and the candidate's report on the plan of the election campaign shall also be applied to the corporative election.
The above mentioned items deal with all problems of the formal and substantial revision
of the House Law, Electoral Law and
Ordinance of the House of Peers. However, to those who can not understand the corporative
election and penal regulations which
may seem peculiar, the writer will express his belief on the proposal.
The simplification of laws expressed in the so-called Three Clause Law has its attraction
in its flexibility which can protect
the liberty or keep the authority of the State over the political and economical system
according to the current of the times.
.Penalties can be provided in only one article which is comprehensive as to secure
the land independence of candidates, and,
on the other hand, to punish the destructive actions in the election campaign. Moreover,
much can be expected from the reform
plan which aims to catch the real view of the candidate on politics by making the
plan for his election campaign public,
instead of announcing political views in government managed meetings. It should also
be noticed that the control plan rejects
the standardization of the control policy through the whole country, and leaves the
settlement of policy to public
opinion.
Next, the plan which aims at the reorganization of the House of Peers through election
by corporations of various kinds will
be welcomed by the present members nominated by His Majesty, or elected by the highest
tax-payers who will prefer the
corporative election system to the present government nomination system. The titled
members consisting of the descendants of
the feudal princes, court nobles and statesmen will not hesitate to stand as candidates
if they have made some contributions
to central or local corporations. Furthermore, when the abolition of the system of
peerage is considered a project which
reforms the Ordinance of the House of Peers along lines establishing
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EDITORIAL SERIES: 90 (Continued)
ITEM 1 (Continued)
an electoral corporation, is quite practical.
Now, the writer makes additional remarks saying that his plan on political and economic
reorganization is the product of an
intention to make the House of Peers reflective enough to realize its past obstruction
to a parliamentary system which should
represent the people will. It is also intended to make corporation members who wish
to become Diet members active in their
businesses. The writer wishes the general public to investigate these proposals.
The article is signed by TATSUJI, Fuse, a lawyer in Tokyo.
ITEM 2 Ideas on the Cigarette Problem - Mainichi Shimbun - 11 Dec 45. Translator: K. Ketel.
Summary:
Ideas on the Cigarette Problem.
I want to make a short criticism in support of the opposition to the "Peace" Cigarettes
by Mr. MIYAZAKI, which appeared in
this column some days ago. The common worker and the honest white-collar worker have
to stand aside while black market dealers
and rich men enjoy themselves in buying those expensive cigarettes. The honest man
will not be able to smoke unless he earns
money in unreasonable, illegal way. The sale of these "Peace" Cigarettes forces honest
people to do unlawful business.
Another injustice is the exchange of treasury lottery certificates for KINSHI Cigarettes.
If cigarettes, which cost four yen,
cannot be bought with money earned by hard labor, the soiling of "Peace" will increase
to antipathy between rich and poor.
Such action is antisocial. For that reason I demand that the plan be withdrawn, and
instead efforts be made to increase mass
production of cigarettes. (Akatsutsumi)
For whom are these luminous cigarettes made? How on earth do you account for such
price? Instead of reducing the price to the
prewar basis of eight sen per cigarette, the Monopoly Bureau is still selling cigarettes
at the wartime price of 35 sen. Why
doesn't the Bureau take into account the condition of the smokers? Cigarettes are
the only enjoyment for the masses and, we
may say, a requisite for workers. The exchange of ton KINSHI Cigarettes for four treasury
lottery certificates is very
convenient. But this will perhaps not appeal to the common people. Only the wealthy
people will find it convenient.
Cigarettes should be mode for us, the masses, who have patiently had to smoke leaves
of trees during the war. We do not
necessarily desire a return to prewar prices, but a suitable price must be found and
a distribution of at least seven to ten
cigarettes per day must be made. If this is done, then cigarettes may be sold at prices
pleasing to the Bureau, be it 100 yen
or more. We demand, therefore, a policy consistent with the people's needs.
(Letter from YOKOYAMA, Ichiro and 22 other members of the 12th neighborhood association,
FUKIAGE, SAITAMA-KEN.)
DISTRIBUTION "X"
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