Press translations [Japan]. Social Series 0110, 1945-12-22.
Date22 December, 1945
translation numbersocial-0458
call numberDS801 .S84
Persistent Identifier
SOCIAL SERIES: 110
ITEM 1 What Will Happen to SHINTO Shrines in NIIGATA-Ken - Provincial Newspaper NIIGATA NIPPO (NIIGATA) - 17 Dec 45. Translator: C. Gilbert.
Summary:
A Supreme Commander's directive has separated Shintoism from State protection. What
will happen then to the Shinto Shrines in
NIIGATA? This question is of great interest, because NIIGATA has more Shinto Shrines
than any other Japanese province-about
5,000 shrines in all. The question of State, provincial, city or village, that is,
official or public, subsidy is negligible,
because almost all of the Shrines have always been self-supported through income from
their own property and voluntary
offerings and contributions from the people.
However, the validity of this assertion, depends on the continuance of making people's
monetary offerings and contributions as
in the past. The existence of the NIIGATA Shinto Shrines is made dependant on the
continued belief of the people of the
province in Shintoism.
The SHINTO Priests will naturally lose their preferential treatment as State officials,
but it is yet an open question whether
or not all Shinto Shrines will be reduced to an equal status. The most likely development
is that the fate of the individual
Shinto Shrines will be dependant on the Shinto priest in charge. Under this condition
it is to be expected that only the large
shrines will prosper, while some of the smaller ones will fall in neglect. The people's
belief in Shintoism, as a whole, will
be maintained.
ITEM 2 Shintoism is Religion, by Prof. ANESAKI - Provincial Paper NIIGATA NIPPO (NIIGATA) - 18 Dec. 45. Translator; G. Gilbert.
Full Translation:
Professor ANESAKI, Masaji, authority on Japanese religions, who was questioned at
General Headquarters on Shintoism, expressed
himself as follows:
"I have been questioned repeatedly by Allied Headquarters on the subject of Shintoism.
The Allied directive on Shintoism is as
we expected. Pure Shintoism is a splendid peasant religion. However, State subsidy
and State control of Shintoism was an
error. When the present Emperor was still a crown prince, he once asked me if Shintoism
was a religion. I told him at the time
that I considered Shintoism a splendid religion. Allied Headquarters asked me whether
Shintoism had not implanted Militarism
among the Japanese people. I replied that Shintoism had not done so, but the militarists
made a tool of Shintoism to propagate
militaries in among the people.
SOCIAL-SERIES: 110 (Continued)
ITEM 2 (Continued)
Compulsion of students to worship at shrines under the leadership of teachers, without
knowing what is was all about, was such
an expression of militaristic misuse of Shintoism in an endeavor to unify Japanese
national sentiment. Under the Supreme
Commander's directive, Shinto Shrines will be under civil management. The question
is what will be done about the Grand Shrine
of ISE. Probably, this Shrine, too, will be placed under civil management. In what
way? The Grand Shrine of ISE deifies the
ancestry of the Emperor and should, therefore, be under state management.
Another extremely difficult question is the matter of Japanese national holidays.
I assume that General Headquarters has also
given this matter a great deal of thought. The Festivals of the spring and autumn
Equinox are festivals of the Japanese
people. So is the NIINAMESAI, which is the Japanese Thanksgiving for Harvest, however,
the KANNAMESAI, which is the offering
of the new crop to the Imperial Ancestry, is not a festival applying to all Japanese
people, but is concerned only with the
Grand Shrine of ISE. No matter how these question may be decided, one thing is certain:
SHINTOISM will revert to its original
character and become a religion of the people.
ITEM 3 Condition in MUKDEN - Provincial Newspaper, CHUBU NIHON SHIMBUN (NAGOYA) 19 Dec 45. Translator: C. Gilbert.
Summary:
Following is the report of USAMI, Kyoji, leader of the Japanese concentrated in MUKDEN,
submitted to the Repatriation Office
in FUKUOKA.
"At present, there are about 400,000 Japanese concentrated in MUKDEN, 150,000 of
whom are refugees from Northern MANCHURIA.
Japanese department stores in MUKDEN have been almost completely devastated by fire.
On an average, 17 Japanese are lodged in
one house. Refugees arriving from Northern MANCHURIA are spiritually aid physically
so exhausted that many of them die shortly
after arrival. They are not permitted to use the trains and must, therefore, walk
all the way, Enroute, they are exposed to
robbery and brutality not to mention the natural Hardships. There is a serious shortage
of coal at present in MUKDEN, one ton
costing about 1,500 yen. As the Japanese do not have the money to buy coal at such
a price, they are in grave danger of
freezing to death this winter.
Theoretically, the Chinese officials have agreed to give the Japanese a ratio of
1 go 2 shaku of KAO-LIANG per day, but as
most of them do not have sufficient money, they scarcely get this starvation ration.
As a result, the current death rate per
day exceeds 100 persons, and the rate increases as the weather gets colder.
Death is caused by illness, famine and suicide. The Japanese are not permitted to
draw money from their deposits, and the cash
they had on hand is exhausted, Adults as well as children try to make a living by
picking up coal and peddling on the streets,
but the amount they earn is not worth mentioning. At least the women and children
must, somehow, be repatriated at once
because the Japanese in MUKDEN are now fighting against certain death.
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SOCIAL-SERIES: 110 (Continued)
ITEM 4 400,000 Japanese teachers to be probed - Militarists and Ultra Nationalistic to be Dismissed - Tokyo Shimbun - 20 Dec 45. Translator: Y. Akabane.
Full Translation:
In connection with the wholesale cleanup of militaristic or ultra-nationalistic educators,
the Education Ministry, conforming
to a directive of Allied Headquarters dated 31 October, has drafted "Regulations relating
to examination for eligibility of
teachers" and "Regulations relating to the teachers' eligibility examination committee".
This has been done in order to decide
the qualifications of teachers, numbering around 400,000, all over the country. Investigations
have been going on in order
properly to formulate these regulations and ensure a just composition of committee.
An outline of these regulations will
shortly be made public.
The regulations will apply not only to teachers but also to government and public
officials in charge of educational services,
founders of private schools and chief managers of schools. It is expected that a large
number of these presently empleged will
be disqualified as a result of the committee's examination.
Examination Regulations:
- 1.Persons not eligible as teachers and those to be dismissed: (a) Persons who have believed in or advocated militarism, ultra-nationalism, despotism and totalitarianism, either Nazi or Fascist, and other similar thoughts; (b) Persons who have helped foster the militalistic policy by emphasizing an obstinate anti-foreign spirit. The intent of conquer the world or develop a new order for Eastern Asia; (c) Persons who have been prosecuted or impeached, as members of an ultra-nationalistic body or as individuals; (d) Persons who have had special connections with Nazi or Fascist governments or their organs and cooperated with the execution of their policies; (e) Persons who have opposed the policies of the Allied Occupation Forces.
- 2.Persons are to be dismissed at the committee's discretion: (a) Ex-army and navy officers, and non-commissioned or warrant officers who are in the following categories—Graduates of the Military Academy, Military Aerial Academy and Military Police School. Graduates of the Naval Academy and Naval Engineering Academy; Non-commissioned or warrant officers engaged in their proper active services; Army and navy officers of technical, accountant, medical, veterinary, judicial and musical services, as well as non-commissioned or warrant officers engaged in the same services; (b) Persons likely to fall within the foregoing grouping and come under the following—Those who held positions in government or civil organs in charge of intelligence propaganda services, or thought guidance, or their control during the war; those who have been considered to come under the foregoing because of their works, essays, lectures, and so on, since 1931.
- 3.Persons not to be newly employed as teachers; Army and Navy officers and non-commissioned or warrant officers, except the following—graduates of universities or colleges who have graduated since the termination of the war; those who are qualified in the technical, accountant, medical, veterinary judicial and musical services and who intent to become teachers in their respective fields; officers coming under the last category must, however, be adjudged by a competent committees before being - 3 -
- SOCIAL SERIES: 110 (Continued) ITEM 4 (Continued) employed as teachers.
- 4.Persons who have been dismissed or compelled to retire or who have been suspended from duty since 1931, because of anti-militaristic, liberal, religious and other similar thought tendencies shall be given priority in their reinstatement in so far as they still hold their principles of thought and are fitted to work as teachers.
Composition of Committees
- 1.A Central Committee shall be established in the Education Ministry and shall consist of 15 members (five Education Ministry's officials and ten representatives from various circles), with the vice-Minister of Education as president. This will be the organ of review on the recommendations of the local committees.
- 2.University Commiittees: These shall be established in each university, consisting of members of the faculty. If considered necessary by the university president, the committee may be composed of members of the school council.
- 3.College Committee: This shall be established in the Educational Ministry, consisting of 15 members, with the director of the school education bureau as its president. Committee members shall be composed of three officials of the Ministry of Education, three directors of high schools, three presidents of colleges, three directors of normal schools and three representatives of other circles. The selection of members who are school heads shall be made by mutual-election proportional to the number of public and private schools.
- 4.Prefectural Committees: These consist of 20 to 25 members with their respective governors as presidents. The members shall be selected from among those engaging in provincial educational services, secondary school principals, heads of young men's night schools, national schools and local representatives of various circles.
DISTRIBUTION "X"
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