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Press translations [Japan]. Political Series 0217, 1946-01-23.
translation-number: political-0895
call-number: DS801 .S85
GENERAL HEADQUARTERS
SUPREME COMMANDER FOR THE ALLIED POWERS
ALLIED TRANSLATOR AND INTERPRETER SECTION
PRESS TRANSLATIONS
No. 895 Date: 23 Jan 46
POLITICAL SERIES: 217
ITEM 1 Communists Retrain Vetrerans - Provincial Newspaper Kahoku Shimpo - 19 Jan
46. Translator: Paasche.
Summary:
Demobilized soldiers are regarded as so many war criminals by many people who point
to them as "militarists” Not so with NOZAKA's communists who intend to become, "the
party
beloved by the masses". They have systematically started to retrain demobilized soldiers
on a large scale. This has resulted in large-scale additions of converts from veterans
among whom there are many KAMIKAZEs. The retraining has been entrusted to the Union
of Young Communists, and this fact is attracting attention. The converts were told
by Communist
SHIGA, "Now you must get very busy".
ITEM 2 Communist Party Opens School - yomiuri-Hochi - 22 Jan 46. Translator; R. Ochiai.
Full Translation:
Toward developing truly representative party leaders for the future, the Communist
Party of JAPAN opened a school at its YOYOGI headquarters.
Lectures on Mondays and Fridays are offered to youths in the TOKYO Area.
Though the school is now still being run on a system of lectures on account of lack
of a suitable place and expenses, it is intended to expand facilities to college size
so that
youths of superior ability may be summoned to study from all over the country. The
lecturers are IZU, Kimio; KAWAKAMI, Kan[illegible]hi; OKAMOTO, Masashi; and
UCHINO, Shoji. The texts are STALIN's "Basis of Leninism", MARX's "Dialectical Materialism",
and the "Marxist History". Only party member are allowed to attend at present.
ITEM 3 Welfare Ministry Officials' May Be Purged - Asahi Shimbun - 22 Jan .46. Translator;
S. Sano.
Extracts:
The following persons have been chiefs of local Imperial Rule Assistance Association
branches while Prefectural governors. They are employed in the welfare Ministry: Vice-Minister
of Welfare KAMEYAMA, Takashi; Chief of Sanitation Department SAWA, Shigetani; Chief
of Labor Administration Department TAKAHASHI, Koya; Chief of Social Department KURIHARA,
Minoru;
and Vice-president of the Board of Welfare for Veterans (HOGOEN) KAZUFUJI, Tetsuomi.
ITEM 4 local Election Revision - Yomiuri-Hochi - 22 Jan 46. Translator: K. Kato.
Summary:
The Home Ministry has decided to submit a bill for the revision of the local election
system, in accordance with the revised House of Representatives election law, to the
extraordinary Diet session after the general elections. The Ministry began the draft
of a revision plan of the prefecture, city and town system. The object of the revised
local
election system plan is an enlargement of the franchise; the lowering of the age limit
of franchise holders from 25 to 20; and the granting of the franchise to women. In
the House
of Representatives election law, they discriminate between the age limit of a suffrage
and eligibility holder; a suffrage holder is above 20 years of age; and an elegilibility
holder is above 25 years of age.
As a member of a local assembly, especially in village town city and prefecture,
an eligibility holder is expected to be above 20 years of age In order to democratize
local
autonomous administration at the time when citizenship will be extended with the revision
of the Shi and Oho System, the right of voting at a Shi, Cho,. or Son assembly will
be
enlarged, and the curtailment of a prefectural governor's right of supervision will
be effected.
ITEM 5 Liberal party Announces General plan for Constitutional Reform - Emperor to
Superintend Sovereignty - Aaahi Shimbun - 22- Jan 46. Translator: K.
Onishi.
Full Translation:
The Liberal Party established, last November, a six-member special council to carefully
investigate constitutional-reform. The Council consisted of Mr. ANDO, Chief of the
Political
Investigation Committe Mr. TOKUJIRO, Kanamori Former chief of the Legislation Board;
Mr. KIYOSHI, Asai Keio University Professor; Mr. HISASHI, Yoshida, former division
head of the
Supreme Court; Mr. SENZO, Higai, Former chief of the Insurance Board; and Mr. FUMIAKIRA,
Go, President of Nippon University. After careful study they completed a draft which
was
passed at the General Affairs Board Meeting on l6 January.
The general meeting was convened on 21 January at 1000 hours. Chief secretary KONO
reported on the progress of the Council, and Mr. ANDO, chief of the Political investigation
Committee, expressed the object of constitutional reform, and especially the basic
idea of maintaining the Emperor system. Dr. ASAI explained item after item on the
main points of
the proposed reform, and the party passed the resolution. In consequence, the party
announced the contents of said general plan together with president HATOYAMA's remarks.
The main points of constitutional reform proposed by the Liberal Party are;
| The Emperor |
| The body of the sovereignty is the Nation. |
| The Emperor is the superintendent of the sovereignty. |
| 3.. The Emperor is of one lineage for all ages. |
| The Emperor has no legal and political responsibilities, |
| Matters pertaining to so-called sovereignty: The following subjects and all other national affairs performed in the name of the Emperor should be performed on the advice of the state ministers. |
| Sanction and promulgation of laws. |
| Convening, opening, closing, suspension of the Diet and dissolution of the House of Representatives. |
| Appointment and dismissal of government officials. - 2 - |
|
POLITICAL SERIES: 217 (Continued) ITEM 5 (Continued) |
| Diplomacy. |
| Granting of honors. |
| Amnesty. (Note; The following rights belonging to the Emperor under the present Constitution should be abolished: Emergency ordinance, order of execution legislation of independent ordinances, institution of government organizations, supreme command, formation of military forces, proclamation of martial law, and supreme power on emergency.) |
| Rights of the People. |
| Liberty of thought, speech, religious belief, study, and art cannot be restricted arbitrarily even by means of laws, |
| Freedom of business and labor cannot be restricted without provision by law. |
| Maintenance of private property and security of legitimate livelihood. |
| Diet |
| The Diet is the organ of legislation and, at the same time, it is the institution that supervises the Government's administration. |
| In general, all laws in principle should depend upon the legislation (law) of the Diet. |
| The first house shall be the House of Representative and the second house shall be the House of Councillors, and the respective organizations shall be stipulated by law. |
| The House of Councillors shall be the organ for the utilization of learning and experience and shall be dedicated to constant control of politics. |
| The House of Representatives as the first house will be given priority over the House of Councillors roughly in the following way: |
| Intensification of the right of prior discussion of budget by the House of Representatives. |
| When the House of Councillors amends or rejects a bill passed by the House of Representatives, it shall be returned to the House of Representatives to be discussed again; and if the bill is passed again by a majority of two-thirds or more, the said amendment or rejection shall become invalid. (In connection with this, there shall be restriction on time for discussion by the House of Councillors.) |
| The House of Councillors is prohibited from making an appeals to the Emperor for, or passing resolutions on confidence in the Cabinet. |
| When the Diet is not in session, each House establishes its own standing committee authorizing temporarily to perform informal legislation or other necessary acts to stand for the respective House in case there is no time to convene the Diet. |
| The Diet is entitled to negotiate directly with any of the administrative authorites or with the people. |
| State ministers and Cabinet. |
| As for the state ministers and the Government, the fundamental subjects shall be stipulated by law excepting those provided for in the constitution. |
| Clarify the pre-eminance of the Prime Minister, the head of the Cabinet, over other
state ministers. - 3 - |
|
POLITICAL SERIES: 217 (Continued) ITEM 5 (Continued) |
| Clarify at ate ministers' responsibilities to the Diet. |
| The system of the Cabinet should be stipulated in the Constitution, and the Cabinet is empowered to issue orders of execution, independent orders, and other orders. |
| Privy Council. |
| The system of the Privy Council should be abolished. |
| Courts of Justice and Auditing Board. |
| Intensify the independence of jurisdiction; and the Supreme Court should be directly subordinated to the Emperor. |
| Firmly establish the supervising power of the Chief of the Supreme Court over lower class courts. |
| The Board of Inspection should be separately established and put under the jurisdiction of the Minister of Justice. |
| The Court of Administrative Litigation should be abolished, and transferred to courts of justice. Moreover, the scope of the subjects for administrative litigations shall be expanded |
| The president of the Board of Audit shall be directly subordinate to the Emperor. |
| Appointment of the Chief of the supreme Court and the president of the Board of Audit is subject to a decision of the Diet. |
| Constitutional Reform |
| The Diet is also entitled to propose revision of the Constitution. |
The following is the contents of Mr. HATOYAMA’s talks:
"In presenting our general plan of constitutional reform I appeal to the people.
All of us are now struggling with the bitter difficulties resulting from thorough
devastation of
the great war. When the proposals of constitutional reform appeared, some cried for
destruction of the Emperor System and others advocated his relegation to matters of
honor and
title. Because of this some of the people are bitterly grieving and others are perplexed.
Do such proposals agree with the tradition of our country end beliefs of our people?
Our
Imperial Throne is eternal end he, as the sovereign of our nation, superintends the
sovereignty: - this is the belief of our party, and herein lies also our idea of national
policy
"Our great national laws sanctioned with Imperial seals, the Diet opened and closed
by his presence, appointments of government officials by his orders, friendship with
foreign
nations expressed in his name, grants of honors based on Emperor's dignity and authority,
special order of amnesty showing his benevolence and love; these are the aspects of
the
Emperor we look up to, just like the English people admire the dignity of their King
and take pride in His Majesty.
If mere title could satisfy our sense of esteem a crowned monkey would serve us the
same way. This is decidedly not our belief, and besides it is contrary to the system
of
monarchy. However, for more than ten years our country has been face to face with
many difficulties, which finally led to the present breakdown. The cause of this was
the lack of
firmly established constitutional politics, which obstructed the growth of civil rights,
which in turn, decreased the Emperor's authority and paved the way for free play of
the
military clique and bureaucracy, obscuring the Imperial wisdom, suppressing popular
will, and finally opening a hopeless war.
Our party, therefore, intends first to clarify the position of sovereignty and eradicate
all mysticism, to encourage expansion of the rights of the Diet, establish the system
of
responsible Cabinet, firmly stipulate
- 4 -
POLITICAL SERIES: 217 (Continued)
ITEM 5 (Continued)
duties of state ministers securely, place the Emperor in a position free from responsibility,
legal and political; that is, readjust subjects pertaining to sovereignty.
"With the intensification of jurisdictional independence, civil rights will also
be expanded and protected so that a true constitutional monarchy may be realized.
By so doing our
democracy, existing since the MEIJI Restoration will be restored and strengthened,
and all of us can join hands toward a new destiny. The matters of constitution depend
much upon
the operations outside statute laws.
In presenting our general plan of constitutional reform to the public we hereby vow
to our people that the aspirations of our party shall be all the more noble, and the
sense of
our responsibility shall be all the more grave,"
DISTRIBUTION "X"
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