Japan, Industrial Giant of Asia

Geography. The Japanese call their nation Nippon, which means "Land of the Rising
Sun." Japan is an archipelago of 4,233 islands at East Asia. The four main islands are Honshu (the
largest), Hokkaido, Shikoku, and Kyushu. The Ryukyu chain in the south-west are U.S. occupied, and the
Kuriles in the northeast are occupied by the USSR. With an area of 373,313 sq. km., it is larger than
Britain.

The climate is temperate. The main islands consist mostly of mountains separated by
narrow valleys, and only 17% of the land is arable. There are about 60 active volcanoes. Japan lies within
the seismic belt of the Pacific. About 2,000 earthquakes (normally mild) shake the country each year.
The most devastating earthquake occurred on September 1, 1923, destroying 375,000 homes and
building killing 143,000 people in Tokyo.

Tokyo, the capital, has a population of 26.9 million and is the largest city in the world.
Kyoto, the old capital, is the center of classic Japanese culture. The chief ports are Osaka, Yokohama and
Kobe.

The Japanese. The Japanese aborigines, called Ainus, originally inhabited Japan. Later,
the Mongolians from the north and the Malays from the south gradually pushed the Ainus to Hokkaido
and occupied the islands. Out of this blending of the Ainus, Mongolians and Malays came the Japanese
race. Japan has a population of 127 million. They are polite, dignified, clean, industrious, disciplined, and
highly nationalistic. Nippongo is the national language. Nearly all Japanese are Shintoists or Buddhists.
Less than 1% are Christians.

Japanese aborigines, called Ainus

 Creation Myth. Legends in two ancient books (the Kojiki and Nihongi) say that Japan
was created by the gods. One of their children, the sun goddess Amaterasu, sent her grandson, Prince
Ninighi, to rule the country. His great-grandson Jimmu Tenno became the first of the demi-god
emperors of Yamato (Japan) in 660 BC. The symbols of imperial authority were the mirror, the sword,
and the jewel — all said to be gifts of the gods. This myth of national origin was taught in all Japanese
schools as factual history until 1945. It contributed to the prewar Japanese idea of their divine destiny
and superiority.

Chinese Influence. Chinese influence entered Japan through Korea. In 405 AD, a Korean
scholar introduced Chinese writing. Buddhism reached Japan in 552 AD. In 656-650 Prince Shotoku, the
"Father of Japanese civilization," laid the foundations of political and social life. He wrote the first laws
based on Confucian and Buddhist teachings.

However, there were important differences in the Japanese adaptation of Chinese

culture. Firstly, the Confucian idea of the emperor being replaceable was not adopted by the Japanese;
to them the emperor was a living god and hence irreplaceable (until 1945). Secondly, Buddhism did not
replace Shinto as the national religion. Finally, Japanese ideograms have a different structure and style
from Chinese writing.

Early History. Very few Japanese emperors really exercised total power. Japan was
nearly always dominated by the warrior class — the samurai, shogun, and military cliques.

In the 8th-12th centuries, the Fujiwara family dominated the emperors. Nara was then
the first capital, and the lifestyle followed Chinese culture. During the Heian era, which followed that of
the Fujiwaras, Japan's local civilization flourished. Lady Murasaki, the greatest Japanese woman novelist,
wrote during this period. At this time, Japan was controlled by two military clans — the Taira and the
Minamoto. The capital was moved to Kyoto in 794.

Lady Marusaki-Greatest Japanese woman novelist

 In 1192 a new warlord named Yorimoto dominated the emperor who gave him the title
of Shogun (great general). Thus, from the 12th century to 1867 the shoguns controlled the imperial
government.

Warlord Yorimoto

Yorimoto also established teudalism in Japan. He divided the country into districts and
gave them to his retainers called daimyos (local lords). Each daimyo had a fighting force of warriors
called samurais (knights). His duty was to fight and, if necessary, die for his lord. His code of ethics was
the Bushido (Way of the Warrior) which contained the rules of Japanese chivalry. To a samurai, death in
the battlefield for his lord was glorious. If he failed in his duty to fight or disobeyed his daimyo, he could
only redeem his honor by committing hara-kiri or seppuku (suicide). Like European lords, the daimyos
often waged war against one another. They lived in fortified castles and ruled as petty dictators in their
respective domains.

In 1274 and 1281 two invasion attempts by the Mongol emperor Kublai Khan of China
were thwarted by typhoons. Thus, the Japanese attributed this salvation of Japan to the kamikaze
(divine wind), a tern which was later used for the suicidal pilots of Japanese planes during the end of
World War II.

Emperor Kublai Khan of China

 Ashikaga Shogunate (1338-1575) became a period of feudal wars. Bandits roamed the
countryside, and social anti economic life suffered. During this era, Christianity was introduced by St.
Francis Xavier, “Apostle of the Indies," in 1549, and the first Europeans — the Portuguese -- introduced
the first firearms in 1542.

After this period, three great feudal war-lords of Japan appeared Nobunaga, Hideyoshi,
and Iyeyasu. They were all military geniuses. Nobunaga, son of a daimyo, overthrew the Ashikaga
Shogunate in 1575.

Hideyoshi, son of a poor peasant, unified Japan under his rule (1582-98). He tried to
invade the Philippines and Korea. When he died in 1598, his dream of empire died with him. Japanese
historians hail him as a mighty hero, but Christian writers assailed him as the first Japanese ruler to
persecute Christians in Japan.

Hideyoshi

Tokugawa Iyeyasu succeeded Hideyoshi. In 1603 he founded the Tokugawa Shogunate,

which ruled Japan until 1867, and moved the capital to Edo (Tokyo). Iyeyasu banned Christianity and
persecuted Spanish missionaries coming from Manila. His grandson Shogun Iyemitsu, issued the famous
Seclusion Decree of 1639 closing Japan to the world.

TokugawaIyeyasu
 The closure of Japan to the world was a blessing to the Japanese. During the long
seclusion (1639-1853). Japan developed its own economy, religion, literature, music and arts.

Japan's Contributions to Civilization. Japan, the cultural daughter of China evolved its
own distinct civilization. Its contributions to civilization included (1) the Bushido, or code of chivalry; (2)
Shinto religion, (3) kana alphabet written in ,two styles hiragana (cursive) and katakana (angular); (4)
literary forms such as 'kabuki (classical play), Noh (lyrical play), tanka (31-syllable poem); (5) dignified
social customs, such ås cha-no-yu (tea drinking ceremony) and ikebana (flower arrangement); (6)
landscape gardening; and (7) manly sports such as judo (art of self-defense), kendo (fencing), and sumo
(wrestling).

Opening of Japan (1853). On July 8, 1853 an American squadron under the command of
Commodore Matthew C. Perry entered Tokyo Bay and Compelled the Tokugawa shogun to open Japan
to world trade. Within two years, the shogun signed similar treaties with Britain, Russia, and Holland.

Japanese feudal daimyos from southwest Japan, the founding fathers of modern Japan,
forced the last shogun to resign in 1867.

Meiji Restoration. Under the direction of the southwest lords, the emperor was
restored to power and the capital moved from Kyoto to Edo again. On January 1, 1868 Emperor
Mutsuhito proclaimed the restoration of imperial rule and the end of the shogunate era. He chose the
name Meiji (Enlightened) as his imperial name. (Japanese princes assume another name when they
become emperor). The former castle of the Tokugawa shoguns in Tokyo became the Imperial Palace,
residence of the royal family.

Emperor Mutsuhito

One of the outstanding achievements of the Meiji era was the reorganization of the government based
on the 1889 Constitution, which was written by Hirobumi Ito. Emperor Mutsuhito (Meiji) and his
advisers set aside their foreign bias and welcomed Western learning and -technology. The army and
navy were modernized along European lines. Compulsory military training was introduced. The
Gregorian calendar and decimal system were adopted. Christianity and other religions were tolerated.
The Western system of education was introduced. Foreign teachers and professors were imported to
teach Western science and foreign languages to the Japanese. Bright young Japanese were sent abroad
to study Western arts and sciences. Japan began a program of rapid industrialization and modernization.
Railways, steamships, harbors, banks, and printing presses were started.

Hirobumi- written the 1889 Constitution

Sino-Japanese War (1894-95). The first war that Japan fought as a test of her newly
acquired knowledge of Western warfare and technology was with China. It started on July 25, 1894
when Japanese warships sank a vessel carrying 1,200 Chinese soldiers near Korea. Using modern
weapons and Western military tactics, the Japanese easily destroyed the Chinese land and sea forces
and astounded the world with their victories. As a result of this war Japan obtained Formosa and the
Pescadores. The treaty of Shimonoseki (April 17, 1895) which ended the war also gave Japan the
Liaotung Peninsula but Russia, jealously forced her to return it to China.

Anglo-Japanese Alliances. Japan had proven to the world that she was now a modern
military power. Impressed with her achievements. Britain surrendered in 1894 her territorial rights in
Japan. Other Western powers followed the British example. By 1899 Japan became the first Asian
country to be rid of foreign extra-territorial rights. In 1902 Britain signed the Anglo-Japanese Alliance, a
military agreement.

Russo-Japanese War (1904-05). Japan prepared for her next war, this time with Russia
whom she hated for entering into Manchuria and Korea. Again without a formal declaration of war,
Japanese Admiral Togo's fleet attacked the Russian navy at Port Arthur on the night of February 8, 1904.
After many other battles, the fleet of Admiral Togo ("Father of the Japanese Navy") destroyed the entire
Russian fleet in the Battle of Japan Sea in May 1905.
 Admiral Togo- Father of Japanese Navy

With U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt as mediator, the two countries agreed to end
their war. A treaty was signed on September 5, 1905 at Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Among other
terms, this treaty acknowledged Japanese interests in Korea, and Russia gave to Japan the southern half
of Sakhalin Island and all her rights in the Liaotung Peninsula, including Port Arthur. Later in 1910, Japan
annexed Korea.

As a result of this war, Japan proved that Asians were not inferior to Westerners in
warfare. Also, other Asian nations like the Philippines, India, Indonesia and Vietnam looked to Japan as
the new champion of Asian nationalism.

Japan as a Great Power. Japan had become a great power. This status was confirmed by
World War I, after which she gained more 'territory previously belonging to Germany (the Carolines,
Marshalls, and Palau Islands in the Pacific). The Japanese empire now included the Kuriles, Sakhalin
Korea, Formosa, South Manchuria, and the German islands in the Pacific.

Such a rapid rise to world power in a period of only 50 years was unprecedented in
modern history. Japan's big power status was also confirmed when she was given a seat in the League of
Nations Council.

Fascist Japan. In the 1930s ultra-nationalists and military cliques made trouble for Japan.
It was also an unstable economic era. Japan was badly affected by the Great Depression in the world.
The silk trade collapse hurt farming communities and households where the processing of the silk
cocoons was a cottage industry. Thousands of Japanese immigrated to other countries in search of a
better life. A weak parliamentary system, corruption and scandals in the government worsened the
situation. Communism (which had spread to China) was only prevented from taking root in Japan by
strong family traditions, nationalism, and the secret police.
 From 1932-36 ultranationalists and military cliques assassinated three premiers and
former premiers and other public figures. In February 1936, an attempted coup by younger officers was
peacefully settled. Many of these younger military officers came from the farming districts and they
hated the zaibatsu (financial cliques) which dominated 'the Japanese economy.

These unrests enabled the military to blackmail the government. The cabinet had little
control over the army and navy general staffs and the military cliques which waged aggression in Asia.

Manchurian Incident (1931-33). To secure new markets for Japanese products and
more lands for its population, Japanese militarists (with the financial backing of the zaibatsu) coveted
China. On September 18, 1931, Japanese army officers provoked an incident near Mukden. On the
excuse that the Chinese had blown up a section of the Japanese-owned South Manchurian Rail-way,
Japanese troops seized the city of Mukden.

China appealed to the League of Nations which appointed the Lytton Commission to
investigate the incident. As a result of its report, the League advised Japan to stop the aggression. But
Japan left the League and continued to overrun Manchuria.

Japan created a puppet state in Manchuria called Manchukuo and made Henry Pu-yi,
China's last Manchu emperor, as its ruler. On May 31, 1933 the Sino-Japanese hostilities ceased with the
signing of the Truce of Tangku.

Pu-Yi – last Manchu emperor

 China Incident (1937-41). On July 7, 1937 Japan provoked another incident near the
Marco Polo Bridge in Peking. Japanese precipitated the undeclared war with China. They easily captured
Peking and Tientsin

in north China but met with stiffer resistance in other cities. On December 1937 Nanking (capital
of China's Nationalist government) fell, and General Chiang Kai-shek moved his capital to Chungking.
During these battles, Japanese troops committed some of the worst in history' Even Western interest in
China were destroyed, confiscated or disrupted by the Japanese military advance.

Japan and World War II. On September 1, 1939, while Japanese armies were
overrunning China. World War II broke out in Europe. The victories of Nazi Germany impressed the
Japanese militarists who believed that the democracies had no chance against Hitler. On September 20,
1940, Japan signed the Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy, thus creating the Berlin-Rome-Tokyo Axis.

Meanwhile, American-Japanese relations worsened. The U.S. did not approve of Japan's
seizing Hainan and -the Spratly Islands and the landing of Japanese troops in French Indochina. To
counteract Japanese military aggression, President Roosevelt ordered the "freezing" of all Japanese
assets in the United States and the boycott of trade with 'Japan.

On December 8, 1941 (Asian time) Japanese planes made a Sneak attack on the U.S.
naval base in Pearl Harbor (Hawaii) and destroyed much of the U.S. Pacific Fleet. The following day, the
Allied Powers declared war on Japan.

With amazing speed, Japanese forces captured such vital outposts in Asia as Hong Kong,
Malaya, Singapore, Guam, Wake, and the Dutch East Indies (Indonesia), It was only the Philippines which
gallantly resisted the Japanese invaders, thereby upsetting the Japanese timetable and giving Australia
ample time to complete her war preparations.

By the end of 1942, Japan was in control of East Asia, Southeast Asia, and the Western
Pacific. However, General Douglas MacArthur, who had escaped from the Philippines to Australia, was
already beginning the Allied offensive in the Pacific.

Japan's Defeat and Surrender. By the middle of 1945 Japan was gradually levelled by
massive U.S. air attacks and naval bombardments. Thousands of Japanese were killed or wounded in
these attacks.

On July 26, 1945, the Allied Potsdam Declaration called on Japan to surrender
unconditionally. The destruction of Hiroshima (August 6, 1945) and Nagasaki (August 9, 1945) by atomic
bombs brought Japan to its knees and made it sue for peace.

On August 15, 1945, Japan surrendered unconditionally. All hostilities ended. On

September 2, Japan signed the documents amid solemn ceremonies aboard the battleship USS Missouri
in Tokyo Bay. General Douglas MacArthur, who was named Supreme Commander of Allied Powers in
Japan (SCAP), presided over the historic ceremonies. For the first time in history, Japan tasted the
bitterness of defeat in war.

Allied Occupation of Japan. As the loser in the war, Japan was occupied by the Allied
Powers with General MacArthur as military ruler (SCAP). The Allied occupation lasted from September 2,
1945 to April 28, 1952 and became one of the modern world's most successful foreign occupation
stories. The Japanese cooperated with the SCAP and Allied Powers at the behest of Emperor Hirohito
and national leaders to be good losers. Remarkably harmonious relations existed between the Japanese
people and the foreign occupiers of Japan. Japan was completely revolutionized in a short period by the
Allied occupation, with the following achievements:

1. Democratization. Democracy became a magic word in Japan. A new democratic

constitution was written in 1947 by the occupation authorities. It provided for an elected parliament
(Diet). Women were given equal rights as men. The Emperor was no longer a god but merely a symbol of
state.

2. Demilitarization. All weapons were confiscated and military bases taken over by the
Allied forces. The new Japanese constitution contained a unique provision (Article 9) which pledge the
Japanese people to forever renounce war.

3. Reorientation of values. The intellectual and social values of the people were changed.
The educational system was revamped. Textbooks on Japanese history were rewritten to eliminate racial
bias and militarism Shinto was and to promote democracy. Shinto was abolished as a state religion. Hard
work, freedom and the pursuit of individual happiness replaced the traditionally rigid society. Capitalism
and the profit motive were encouraged.

4. Improvement of the economy. The zaibatsu which had monopolized the wealth and
economy were dissolved. Land reform was instituted, and peasants now owned their own land. Thus
between 1945-53 agricultural output rose by 66%. Labor unions were established and workers’ rights
protected. These chances became a major factor in Japan's miraculous economic recovery and rise to
superpower status by the late 1960s.

5. Punishment of war criminals. Japanese officials and military officers who were
responsible for Japan's aggressive policy in the 1930s and 1940s were tried by war crimes tribunals. The
Tokyo Trial by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East (IMTFE) convicted Premier Hideki Tojo
and other important national figures. Tojo and six others were executed. Others were sent to prison.

Premier Hideki Tojo

 To help the Japanese recover, the Americans gave generous aid to Japan. No crippling
reparations for war damage were imposed on Japan at this time.

The outbreak of the Korean War in '1950 emphasized the need to end the Allied
Occupation of Japan. By means of the San Francisco treaty on September 8, 1951, SCAP was abolished
and Japan became a free nation again. The treaty became effective on April 28, 1952.

Japan as an Industrial Power. Like the fabled phoenix. Japan has emerged from the
ashes of war to become the world's second richest nation, after the United States. Its dramatic recovery
in so short a time has been described as one of the greatest economic miracles in world history.

Today, Japan has the world's highest rate of economic growth. It has the second highest
gross national product (national wealth). It ranks third in world total of exports and imports, but first in
shipbuilding and in the export of electrical and other appliances (TV, radio cassettes, cameras, toys,
watches, etc.) and second in car exports. Its people enjoy the second highest income in Asia (next to the
Kuwaitis).

Japan's economic miracle has been attributed to the following factors: (1) the
industriousness and discipline of the Japanese people; (2) the managerial skill of its industrialists and
businessmen; (3) the technical skills of the people; (4) American technical and financial aid after the war;
and (5) the savings and investment of the people which have been used for economic development
rather than military spending, for unlike other big powers, Japan spends, very little for defense.

Japanese Politics. Japan has had 'twelve paceful changes of government since 1945. It is
Asia's most stable democracy at present.

Despite its being rocked from time to time by violent demonstrations and public
scandals, no government has declared martial law or limited human rights in the postwar era.

Two political parties have controlled the government in 'Japan — the Liberal Democratic
Party which is favored by the business and rural communities, and the Socialist Party, which is allied
with trade and labor unions. Other parties, including the Communist Party, are allowed to exist freely.

The longest serving Prime Minister of Japan was Eisaku Sato (1964-72), during whose
administration Japan became the third industrial power and the first in Asia.

Longest Serving Prime Minister of Japan Eisaku Sato

 Japanese politics has become so corrupt in the modern era that there have been several changes
of government involving resignations of prime ministers and ministers involved in public scandals —
graft and corruption, etc. The nation's worst political scandal since World War II was the infamous
"Recruit scandal." It involved illegal political donations and stock trading, which led to the resignation of
Premier Noborn Takeshita in May 1989. A series of scandals also rocked Japan's financial sector in 1991;
one involved the largest bank and another the four largest securities firms.

Japan in World Affairs. Although Japan does not have a permanent seat in the UN
Security Council (unlike China), it is a world power because of its industrial and economic strength.
Whatever Japan could not win by force of arms in wartime markets for its products, food for its people,
and prestige for its country — it got in the postwar world by the sheer drive and discipline of its people
and the force of the yen economy. In short, Japan lost the war but won the peace.

Impressive gains in almost all fields of human endeavor have been made by the
Japanese — in science and technology, art, literature, cinema, world exploration, and sports. Japan
hosted the first Olympiad in Asia (Tokyo, 1964 and the winter games at Sapporo, 1972). Japan has been
launching space satellites since 1970 and nuclear ships since 1972. It consistently speaks out against the
arms race and refuses to develop nuclear weapons because it is the only country which has suffered
from atomic bombing.

On November 10, 1976 Emperor Hirohito celebrated the golden jubilee of his
coronation, thus becoming the world's longest reigning monarch. He and members of the royal family
are popular. His eldest son, Crown Prince Akihito, broke with tradition by marrying a commoner.

In foreign relations, Japan is closely allied with the United States. The U.S. is its best
trading customer, and American forces are allowed to use military bases in Japan. Japan has made peace
with China through the 1978 treaty between them. It has paid reparations amounting to $300 million to
the Philippines, the most devastated country in Asia after World War II. And it gives generous assistance
to developing through loans, aid and technical cooperation.

Japan sent a large military contingent to keep the peace in Cambodia in 1993. The
United Nations Transition Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) was headed by a Japanese U.N. official, Akashi
Yasushi.

It was the first time that the Japanese sent military forces outside the country since
World War II. The bill to approve the sending of troops abroad was passed by the Japanese Diet only
after a debate on its legality. According to Article 9 of the postwar Japanese Constitution, it can no
longer maintain a large army or enter a foreign war. But the Success of the Japanese participation in the
Cambodian peace-keeping force and the new world conditions are putting pressure on the Japanese
government to reconsider the future military role of Japan.

The popularity of Japan around the world, due to its economic miracle, even helped to
elect a prime minister in Peru with Japanese ancestry — Alberto Fujimori. His family had migrated to
South America in the 1900s.

Japanese economic power spread to the United States, Europe and other countries.
Japanese cars, appliances, cameras, televisions, and electronic goods flooded the market all over the
world.
 Other countries put pressure on the Japanese to open their markets to foreign goods.
The Japanese have enjoyed a trade surplus against other countries.

The Other Side of Japan. Although the Japanese "won" the peace and inspired awe at
their economic power, ugly memories caused by Japanese atrocities during World War II and the
arrogant policies and behavior of many Japanese regularly surfaced to taint the image of the "New
Japan”.

In the 1980s, the Japanese ministry of education issued new textbooks for Japanese
schools that did not tell the truth about the aggression and atrocities of Japan during World War II.
Many Asian countries, including the Philippines, protested at the censorship.

In the 1990s, the stories of "comfort women” or Asian women forced into prostitution
by Japanese soldiers during World War II came into the open. Hundreds of Asian women in Korea, the
Philippines and other countries filed claims for compensation and apology by the Japanese government
for the horrible experiences they suffered.

Today in japan, the new generation has suffered the effects of too much money. Most
Japanese are “workaholics" and do not know how to relax. They work in the office until late hours and
take pleasure in throwing themselves into their work. But they give little time for their families. The fast
pace of modern Japanese life has ruined traditional values, the role of women in the family, and respect
for old folks. Many Japanese have become Westernized and materialistic.

An economic recession and a slowdown in the economy are putting severe pressure on
the Japanese people. The new generation is not as disciplined as the previous ones.

A New Emperor of Japan. On January 7, 1989 the Emperor of Japan, Emperor Hirohito,
died at age 87. He was the longest-serving emperor of Japan — 62 years of reign in war and peace. His
era was called the Showa" (enlightened) era. During his reign, Emperor Hirohito saw Japan's turn to
military aggression, its humiliating defeat in World War II, and its miraculous rise as a world economic
power and as the leading nation in Asia after the war.

Emperor Hirohito- Longest serving emperor of Japan

 The late emperor was worshipped as, a "living god" before World War II. But the
postwar constitution of Japan made the emperor only a symbol of the Japanese people and their unity.
Although some critics blame him as a war criminal who should have been tried and executed after the
war, Hirohito was really a wise and popular emperor. It was he who decided that Japan should end the
war and surrender after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945.

He was succeeded by his 35-year old eldest son, Akihito. Emperor Akihito, the new
Japanese monarch, chose the name "Heisei (emerging peace) for his era. He is expected to be more
open and democratic than his late father. He is the first Japanese prince (now emperor) to be married to
a commoner, Michiko Shoda, now Empress Michiko. Their eldest son, Crown Prince Hiro, who studied in
Britain, will become the heir to the throne.

Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko. She is the first commoner to become empress.

wife Empress Michio Shoda, She is the first commoner to become empress

The fairy Tale wedding of Prince Naruhito and commoner Masako Owada in Tokyo, June 9, 1993.
Eldest son of Emperor Akihito, he become to them to the throne.