Japan in 1960

...Rieviewed by Philip G. Altbach T^he crisis in Japan over the ratification of the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty in 1960 was probably the most serious internal disturbance in Japan's postwar history...

...The militant Zengakuren students, for example, gave a more extreme tone to many mass demonstrations than the labor unions would have liked and were responsible for the well-publicized "invasion" of the Diet buildings...

...Nationalist sentiments, quite strong in Japan, were aroused, since the Treaty was seen by many as an abdication of sovereignty to the United States...

...The student movement, which was to play a crucial role in the crisis, had come under an extremely radical and militant leadership, which was well to the left of the Communist Party...

...The Socialists had suffered a serious electoral defeat and were threatened by a splinter party, the Democratic Socialists...

...The crisis was important not only because it constituted a major political event in postwar Japanese history, and involved the intellectuals, students, and leftist groups in a massive struggle, but because it shows clearly the major forces in Japanese politics...

...It received world-wide attention and had international implications...

...But this is a minor flaw in an otherwise comprehensive and well-written analysis of a crucial political event...

...The Treaty's opponents were not the only elements in transition at this time...

...The Socialist-dominated labor federation, Sohyo, was facing increased competition from both the Communists and Democratic Socialists in the labor movement...

...Leftist student groups, the labor movement, and the Socialist and Communist parties failed to prevent the ratification of the treaty, although the conservative government of Prime Minister Kishi fell as a result of the agitation, and the proposed visit of President Eisenhower was canceled...

...George Packard's remarkable book, Protest in Tokyo, is a detailed consideration of the crisis...

...In the end, and only after a bitter political struggle which involved millions of people in Tokyo and in other parts of Japan, the Security Treaty was signed...

...The ingrained anti-war feelings of a large majority of the Japanese population were mobilized by the opponents of the Treaty, who pointed out that so firm a link to American foreign policy would bring Japan directly into the cold war...

...Packard discusses the events of the crisis in some detail...

...The Communists, who were responsible for the airport attack on Eisenhower's press secretary, attempted to shift the focus of the struggle away from the Japanese government and tried to destroy American influence and prestige in Japan...

...The events of the crisis graphically show, as Packard points out, the stresses within the various elements of the Japanese political scene...

...George Packard has done a thorough job in assembling a mass of information and in effectively dissecting the various organizations and groups involved in the struggle...

...Finally, the fact that many Japanese, particularly on the left, do not fully trust the parliamentary system, contributed to the militancy of many of the demonstrations...

...The protest demonstrations which took place were not spontaneous outbursts, but for the most part were carefully planned manifestations with specific purposes...

...Intellectuals, students, and sections of the middle class in favor of a neutralist position for Japan were naturally opposed to the Treaty, and a latent pro-Chinese sentiment, especially strong among the intellectuals and fed by feelings of guilt because of Japanese behavior in China during World War II, contributed to opposition to the Treaty...

...He has made a major contribution to an understanding of Japanese politics, all the more remarkable because it was written so soon after the event...

...The ruling Liberal Democratic Party, itself a coalition of various elements of Japan's conservative groups, was facing internal dissension...

...Although Packard makes an attempt to maintain impartiality in his analysis, he seems to be somewhat unable to comprehend why the Japanese left should be so opposed to the Security Treaty, since he sees the U.S...

...The crisis also came at a time of change in the Japanese left-wing movements...

...role in Japan as essentially a constructive one...

...The Security Treaty crisis indicates a number of underlying elements in Japanese political life...

...Often, as Packard points out, various elements within the protest movement used these demonstrations for their own purposes...

...The various factions struggling for leadership in the party made Prime Minister Kishi's position difficult, and only the large Liberal Democratic majority in the Diet enabled him to maneuver in the face of an almost united opposition...

...The 1960 crisis culminated almost a decade of growing anti-Americanism in Japan, and a realization by leftist elements within Japan's political system that a strong stand would have to be made if the trend they perceived in the direction of increased reliance on the United States in the area of foreign policy was to be stopped...

...Clearly such an important political event deserves systematic analysis...