History of
"The Mita Campus" Chapter 2 <1951 - 1955>
"The Mita Campus" is an
English-language journal started by a group of the students
at Keio University of which the initial
issue was published in August 1946, one year after Japan's surrender to the
Allied Forces of the World War II. Not only the students of Keio University,
but the majority of Japanese citizens were facing hardship and deprivation as
the result of their defeat in the war.
The period covered by this Chapter 2 was
probably the most eventful years for Japan as well as Keio. San Francisco Peace
Treaty was signed on September 8th 1951 and became effective on
April 28th 1952 which restored Japan back to a fully empowered
sovereign nation from a status of a vanquished and occupied region. Korean War
started on June 25th 1950 which if not voluntarily, at the request
of the Allied Forces, prompted the start of the expansion of the paramilitary
NPR which developed into SDF in the ensuing fifty years as well as Japan's
manufacturing and overall improvement of the people's living standard.
The universal conflict between the
capitalist block and the socialist block which included USSR and PRC, Japan's
overwhelming neighbors, became more intense which affected the Japan as the
purges of the leftist were enforced by the U.S. forces and succeeded by the
independent Japanese regimes. There were numerous labor disputes. The revival
of the "Reactionary Trend." etc. etc. which will be described in more
details below.
The relation between the communism and
capitalism blocks became strained and intense all over the world particularly
in Korean Peninsula when North Koreans commenced a pre-planned invasion of the
South in June 25th 1950, the only active military conflict (a hot
war) which lasted until 1952. Japan could not escape from the repercussions of
such a conflict. Under the instruction of the Allied Occupation Troops, Japan
had to create and maintain its own military forces (originally National Police
Reserve, currently Self Defense Force) to supplement the U.S. Forces which were
moved from Japan to Korea to reinforce ROK
in the conflict.
The creation of such Japanese paramilitary
groups was made without amending the Article 9* of 1946 Constitution
which expressly prohibited the use of military forces to resolve international
disputes. (Please refer to the quotation below.)
*National Constitution of Japan Chapter 2 Article 9 (An English Translation)
(1) Aspiring sincerely to an international peace based
on justice and order, the Japanese people forever renounce war as sovereign
right of the nation and the threat or use of forces as means of settling
international disputes.
(2) To accomplish the aim of the preceding paragraph,
land, sea and air forces, as well as other war potential, will never be maintained.
The right of belligerency of the state will not be recognized
Original Japanese Text of the above;
The Mita Campus, during this period of
storm and strain, when Japan went through very drastic, confused and frequently
mutually contradictory changes such as Article 9 of the National Constitution
and U.S.-Japan Mutual Security Treaty studiously followed such and other
changes.
Due to the signing, ratification and
enforcement of the San Francisco Peace Treaty in 1951 Japan was released from
various restrictions imposed on her including the censor of publications
inclusive of the Mita Campus by GHQ.
It must be noted that the increased
intensity of the Cold War (including the Korean War) accelerated the conclusion
of the Peace Treaty between Japan and the Allied powers. As early as July 11th 1947, the U.S. government
summoned the members of the Far East Commission (U.K., USSR, France, China
(then Kuomintang), Canada, australia, New Zealand, the Netherland and
Philippine) to convene a preliminary conference for the purpose of discussing
the terms of the peace treaty with Japan. USSR insisted that such a preliminary
conference should be held only by U.S., U.K., China and USSR, and each of these
should have veto and U.S. cancelled its proposal and changed its policy to
promote the economic assistance to Japan without the peace treaty.
As early as January 18th 1948,
General MacArthur sent a letter to the Secretary of Army of the U.S. Government
recommending to allow Japan to loosen restrictions on foreign trade, allowing
the overseas travel by its nationals and resolution of Japan's domestic affairs
autonomously .In March 1948, a mission headed by Deputy Secretary of U.S. Army
visited Japan and made the following recommendations (1) Renouncement of Anti-monopoly
Policy (2)Enhancement of Economic Aids (3) Mitigation of the Reparation
obligation.
On October 1st 1949, Chaiman Mao
Zedong proclaimed the independence of the People's Republic of China. On November 6, 1950, after
General MacArthur started what was known as "November Offensive" in
Korean War, PRC troops attacked the UN Forces on the Korean side of Yalu River
for the first time. Then on November 20th
of the same year, UN Troops reached Yalu River and on November 26th
PRC troops staged a massive counter-attack on UN troops which eventually
retreated back to 38th parallel. In July1951 the negotiation for
cease fire was started between UN forces and North Koreans while the battle was
still raging. The negotiation broke down in October 1952 as North Korean and
the Chinese insisted on the mandatory repatriation of their personnel held as
POW by UN Forces even though they voluntarily wished to stay in the south. On
October 24,1952, Dwight. D. Eisenhower as the U.S. presidential candidate
promised that if he is elected he will personally visit North Korea to
negotiate the armistice. On November 29th 1952, Eisenhower as the
President -elect visited North Korea to commence the Armistice negotiation and
the hostilities were finally stopped on July 27.1953.
< 1951>
As stated above, Japan concluded the Peace
Treaty and the Mutual Security Treaty concurrently with the United States at
the Peace Conference in the San Francisco Opera House held between September 4th
and 8th 1951,
In addition to such a major change, General
MacArthur, the Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers (SCAP) with most
illustrious military career, was dismissed on April 11, 1951 from his
commission by President Truman and replaced by Lieutenant General Mathew
Ridgway (who was appointed as the U.S. Army Chief of Staff on August 15th
1953). The reason of the dismissal was his insubordination to the instructions
sent to him by President Truman. The dismissed General sent a letter to then
House Minority Leader that as far as Korea is concerned "there is no
substitute for victory ".which was construed as his response to Truman's
plan to negotiate a truce. The dismissed general was given a chance to speak to
a joint session of the Congress on April 18 1951 urging the U.S. to expand the
war against the Communist China.
,At this time, Japan was still under the
control of the Allied Powers, i.e. GHQ and not much information on the
development of U.S. internal politics as well as the predicament of General
MacArthur was either available to Japanese media, or the Japanese media voluntarily restrained
themselves from disseminating the information
because GHQ-censorship on Japanese media
was still in force and the media had to exercise care in reporting these
sensitive matters The Japanese public
had been looking at the General with exaggerated awe and respects, and the
actual causes of his departure from Japan did not reach the men on the street.
Some critics thought the General's intention to run for the President may have
been one of the reasons of Truman's
displeasure.
Republican National Convention on July 7
1952, nominated Eisenhower as the Presidential candidate for the Election in
that year.. Democrats chose Adlai Stevenson. as its presidential candidate on
July 21 1952.
On October 24,1952 Eisenhower promised if he is elected , he
will visit North Korea to negotiate the final truce. On November 4, 1952
,Eisenhower won the presidential election by garnering 33.927,549 votes out of
total 61,547,861 votes. Electoral vote count was 442 to 89. On November 29,1952 Eisenhower visited North
Korea to commence the armistice negotiation. Negotiation was concluded on July
27th 1953.
These events testify that Asia surrounding
Japan has became the major theatre of the
Global events. The cold war between the
U.S. and USSR kept intensifying and they were competing in the size of the
respective nuclear arsenals.
Anti-British conflicts are started in the Middle Eastern region. The
people were referring to such occurrences and the tendency as " Gyaku-
Koosu" (Reactionary Trend ). The use of this phrase became quite popular
in the autumn of 1951, when Yomiuri Newspaper commenced a morning serial titled
"Gyaku Course" in which various political and social affairs showing
the signs of the resurrection of Reactionary forces were sarcastically treated.
Resurrection of the Right wing groups, and
" Chambara" ( choreographed and stylized Japanese sword fight),
Japanese Rearmament, "Haboo-hoo" (Subversive Activities Prevention
Act) and so many subjects on reverting to the pre-WWII years were discussed
heatedly and often received strong supports.
Korean War was welcome to Japanese people
because of the "Tokuju Keiki" (Special Requirements boom). The prices
of various metals were rising and the scrap metals
were becoming precious and sought after as
"Hikari-mono" (Those which shine)
The reinforcement of GIs arriving for the
duty in Korea introduced "GI Hair Cut" which won popularity
instantaneously.
Junzaburo Ban, a popular comedian on
Asakusa Operetta stages, invented completely
meaningless and idiotic interjections such
as "Aja-pa !" and "Kuru-kuru-pa!" which became the favorite
of "Me- Her Tribes" ( Blind Followers of Whatever is in Trend).
May 1951 issue of The Mita Campus carried
the full text of the Letter of Farewell to the dismissed General MacArthur from
Prof. Ushioda, then "Jukucho", representing the entire Keio group
filled with candid gratirude and respects. This message was delivered to the
General by Prof. Kiyooka. This was because of the early repatriation of Hiyoshi
Campus to Keio from the Allied Occupation Forces which was promoted by the
General
as well as his great efforts expended in
restoring the entire Japan to peace. The
message contain such signs of gratitude and admiration with the candid astonishment
on his sudden dismissal of which background
had not been closely explained to ordinary Japanese at that time.
1951 was the fifth anniversary of the Mita
Campus July 1951 issue carried Prof.
Kiyooka's memoirs of the journal's first five years of existence. Another topic in July 1951 was the visit of
General Ridgway, the newly appointed Commander of the UN Forces to Keio with
his wife on which occasion he delivered the message to the students of this
institution of long tradition on the privilege of the students in enjoying the
freedom of the expression and thought supported by the realization of the
responsibility.
While such mood of US-Japan friendship was
gathering momentum and the Democracy in Japan followed
"Americanization" , the wounds of the WWII were yet in the healing
process.
December 1951 issue of the journal carried
an article on a group of Keio Students who
were trying to save a Japanese university
students inducted into military service during the war and incarcerated in
Philippine after sentenced to death for alleged war crimes by the local
tribunals with untrained judges and vengeful jury members..
It is undeniable that there were many
Japanese soldiers who were captured in foreign countries at the end of the war
and tried by local tribunals for the alleged war crimes in which they were not
actually involved, were incriminated, executed or butchered. On the Mita Campus
issues around that time, the articles on such atrocious nature were placed
right next to the articles on international student exchange events to
cultivate the mutual friendship. Even though such things did not happen
deliberately - the editors had to clam in the articles and reports contributed
by the staff of the journal as much as possible in the limited space of the
journal which did not allow the luxury of refined editing - the irony of the
contrast of such articles went beyond the intended sarcasm.
November
1951 issue sported the feature on traditional Waseda-Keio Basball matches.
（The first game of Waseda-Keio
baseball match was held in 1903 and continued annually until 1906 when the
match was suspended due to the riots caused by over-excited students. It was
revived in 1925 as a part of Biannual Six Universities Base Ball Tournament and
continued until 1943 when it was suspended due to WWII. It was re-started in
1945 and continuing upto 2011 without further disruption.）
The remaining spaces of the journal were
taken by the serials such as "The Voice of the Youth", "World of
Women" and the reviews on the new movies and books appeared regularly..
These serials and regular reviews provided the students with the forums to air
their own views and express their thoughts on a regularly published journal of
substantial circulation, the opportunity rarely afforded to Japanese students
at that time.
< 1952>
1952 was the first year when "The Mita
Campus" had a lady Editor-in-Chief, Ms
Fumiko Samejima. An Art-major (Literature),
Class of 1953. She taught at The University of Tennessee at Knoxville.
This is the year known for its "Bloody
May Day - May 1st 1952"
On this day, in the open square in front of the Imperial Palace and the
Hibiya Park in Tokyo, a large group of demonstrators who are the members of the
Japan Communist Party and the left-wing extremists supported by North Korean
resident groups fought a bloody hand-to-hand, stick-and stone battle against
the equally large number of policemen who were on duty to suppress expected
riots on this day of the workers' festival. There were the total of the dead
and wounded in excess of one thousand on both side. Also more than one thousand
of the rioters were apprehended. Some militant demonstrators resorted to
Molotov Cocktails which came to be more prevalently used in later incidents .
One of the reasons of the people's unrest
was the disappointment among the populace which emanated from the continued
presence of no less than 719 U.S. military posts through out Japan due to the
US-Japan Mutual Security Treaty, even though the Peace Treaty had been signed
and enforced. Such wide presence of the U.S. military facilities caused various
frictions with the local residents who had impression that they were swindled
by the U.S. (and their own conservative politicians) who used the Peace Treaty
as the bait for making the new contribution and sacrifice to protect the
American interest in the Far East..
Japanese Communist Party in its national
convention held in October 1952 issued the directives including the enhanced -
or more extreme - promotional activities for the proliferation of their creeds,
and the use of home-made arms - such as time bombs, Molotov Cocktails and soda
bottle grenades - in the conflict against the authorities.
A clandestine China-based radio station
named "Free Japan Broadcast" started operation heralding leftist
messages started operating in this year. The communist Public Relation
approaches to Japan were gathering their forces. and the Unionists and the
leftist students were chanting "Yankee Go Home".
Kyuuichi Tokuda(1894-1953), the First
Secretary General of Japan's Communist Party and an attorney-at-law, was a
native of Okinawa. He was a very bright student and accepted at the prestigious
Seventh National Preparatory College in Kagoshima, but could not stand derogatory
remarks on Okinawa some faculty members made so he transferred to Nihon
University (a private school in Tokyo) and passed the bar exam.
He represented the workers and the unions
in litigation against the abuses of the employers. But he was arrested for
breach of Peace Reservation Law and incarcerated
continuously for 18 years between 1928 and
1945. Several days after Japan's surrender
on August 15,1945 a French journalist
"discovered" Tokuda at Fuchu Penitentiary near Tokyo. Then Tokuda
returned to the Communist Party and was elected to the member of the House of
Representatives. Tokuda could not get along with more sophisticated,
internationally-oriented party members. Then the Occupation Force announced Red
Purge. Tokuda exiled himself to Communist China to escape whatever persecution
he may face due to the Red Purge order and/or internal bickering.. He died of
cancer in Yenan after four years in China. Despite the difference of political
creeds, Tokuda and Shigeru Yoshida, as well as other old-fashioned politicians
developed mutual respect.
Japanese society seemed to be unstable even
compared with .the days immediately following the surrender ( August 15, 1945).
One of the incidents which were widely reported was his abduction on November
25, 1951(San Francisco Peace Treaty became effective and enforceable on April
27 1952 when the submission of U.S. ratification document for the treaty was
completed.) and the ensuing illegal
detention up to December 7 1952 of a novelist Wataru Kaji (his penname. The actual
name is Mitsugu Setoguchi) then 47 years old reportedly by a GHQ
counter-espionage agency known as "Z Unit or GHQ-G2 " headed by US
Army Colonel John Cannon under the command of Major General Charles Willoughby,
said to be dissolved in April 1952. All pending business were taken over by
CIA. Kaji graduated from Japanese Literature Department of Tokyo Imperial
University and proceeded to the graduate course. He jointed Japanese Communist
Party after graduation and started publishing stories on the activities of
Organized proletariarts. In 1934 He was indicted for the infringement of Peace
Preservation Law ( Chian-Iji-Hoo 1926-1945) for his leftist activities and
received the judgement for two years imprisonment with five years stay of
execution. He went to Shanghai in 1936 to translate the works of Lu Xan, a
modern Chinese novelist
His patron was Kanzo Uchiyama, a well-known
book-seller and publisher of Japanese translation of Chinese books and Chinese
translation of Japanese books who is known to have provided assistance to
Japanese and Chinese writers and for the bilateral cultural exchange. Uchiyama
Book Store as of 2011 is still going strong.
When the Japan-China War started, Kaji joined the camp of Chang Kai
Shek's, Kuomingtan Government in Chungkin, and organized "The Anti War
League of Japanese People" to lead the resistance against the Japanese
militarist government for which he became well known. Kaji was well known for
his leftist inclination and it puzzles us why he joined Kuomintang instead of
Communists. May be his petit bourgeoisie back ground kept him away from the
communist peasants’ life 因Yenan, a rustic area where people lived in
caves where the simplest amenities and
comforts were wanted.. Kaji returned to
Japan in 1945 after the Japanese surrender and ran for the seat at House of
Representatives but failed.
.
What is bewildering is the reason of Kaji's
protracted detention by Z-Unit. The general surmise was the U.S. Forces then
fighting against the North Koreans and Chinese in Korea was trying to obtain
information on China and the leaders of the Japan Communist Party. When Kaji was released on December 7 1952,
the committee for the judicial affairs of the Japanese House of Representative
(Shuugiin) led by Kosaburo Inomata, a socialist, made an inquiry to the U.S.
Forces in Japan why the U.S. Forces, no longer had the authorities to arrest
and detain Japanese citizens after the ratification of the San Francisco Peace
Treaty kept Kaji in their power.; On December 11th the U.S. Forces
replied that because Kaji confessed that he had been a spy for USSR, the US
Force kept him in detention to protect him from any harm. that might come from
the leftist groups. GHQ did not realize
that during his stay in China, Kaji had stayed with Kuomingtang, the adversary
to the Communists, and not particularly a good source of the information CIC
was seeking then..
During Kaji's detention by Z-Unit, which
looked like a cloak-and dagger thriller you buy at dime storea, there were a several Japanese employees who
took pity on Kaji and smuggled messages to his wife and friends. One of them
was Kozo Itagaki, 23 years old when testified before the Judicial Committee of
the Japanese House of Representative on August 5th 1953. Itagaki was
born in Sakhalin, lost the parents when USSR invaded the Japanese territory in
August 1945 when he was in the 8th grade, became a house -boy for a
USSR Military officer's family, and moved to Manchuria and North Korea, then
joined a group of the third national smugglers and finally reached Tokyo in
July 1949. He got involved in scuffles and fell by roadside due to hunger in
Niigata, were he was taken into custody by the local police that transferred
him to a juvenile detention facility. because he was a minor.
Meantime, U.S.-CIC (Counterintelligence
Corp) contact the Japanese authority and wanted Itagaki for interrogation on
USSR matters. He was transferred to CIC and demanded to sign a statement CIC
prepared on the leftist activities. Itagaki refused to sign the statement
despite torture and Colonel Cannon after realizing Itagaki was useless as the
source of information, decided to use him for collecting information on Kaji.
Z-Unit had apparently dubious connections
with the underworld in Japan and ROK. It had several ships for smuggling between
Japan and Korea and Itagaki participated . They were caught by the Japanese
customs several times red-handed but Z-Unit interceded for immunity because of
its GHQ connection. After the hearing,
Itagaki could not be contacted again.
The hearing of the Diet Judicial Committee,
which was held after the San Francisco Peace Treaty went into effect and no
longer subjected to the censorship by the Occupation Force, was widely reported
by Japanese media as an example of excesses committed by the U.S Occupation
Forces and those took advantage of the winners' prerogatives. But it proved
Kaji had been release when the Occupation Forces lost the control over the
detention of the Japanese citizens. It is possible that the transition between
the Occupation Administration to the Japanese government was not smoothly
executed at the end of the Occupation.
Kaji Abduction/Detention was widely
heralded but it lacked the substance. Even though it was not publicized by
Japanese media, GHQ G-2 that was compiling the history of the WWII in the
Pacific viewed by the U.S. headed by GHQ's Assistant Chief of Staff G-2 Major
General Charles A Willoughby recruited Colonel Takushiro Hattori, the last
chief of the Strategy Section of the Supreme Joint Command of the Imperial Japanese
Forces, and his ex-comrades graduated from Japan's elite Imperial Military
Staff College to obtain more information on military operations immediately
after Japanese surrender on August 15,1945
The Japanese group started the discussion
on the resurrection of Japan's military force. Then the North Korean invasion
of the ROK, compelled General MacArthur to call for the establishment of 75,000
strong National Police Reserve (NPR) to fill the gap left by the mobilization
of U.S. 1st Cavalry and 25th Infantry Divisions stationed
in Japan to Korean peninsula. Hattori and his group were ecstatic. There were
rumors about a coup d'etat to kill Prime Minister Yoshida by the group. Then、Willoughby returned to U.S. with MacArthur
after dismissal and Hattori's influence withered. The Staff College graduates
were denied the chances to lead the NPR forces. The current Self Defense force -
SDF- is led by the graduates of Defense
Academy created later unrelated to the Pre-war military institutions.
USSR tried to plant their seeds and the
capability to draw Japan into their sphere of influence. There was
"Phantom Brigade" (Maboroshi Heidan) consisted by POWs who had been
detained in Siberia ans released from the captivity after submitting the oath
of allegiance to socialism signed under duress in detention and tried to act as
spies for USSR.
However, the Soviets' attempts to mobilize
such a subversive group failed apparently because the members of the Brigade
knew very well that they did not have the support of the local populace who
resented the unilateral cancellation of Japan-USSR Mutual Non-aggression Pact
when Japan was faltering.
While these incidents caused instability
and fear to the Japanese after they regained
independence even though they were aware of the restrictions imposed
upon them due to the Cold War which put them into fear and instability.
Meantime the world was returning to more
normal routines including festivities, tragedies and normal vicissitude. Queen
Elizabeth of Great Britain ascended to the British throne and Japan was sending
its Crown Prince (the current emperor) to her coronation.
The Peace Treaty and Mutual Security Treaty
with US were enforced in 1952. Shigeru Yoshida formed his fourth cabinet.
Mokuseigo, (Jupiter) the first commercial passenger plane Japan Airline had
bought second-hand fell on Miharayama volcano on its scheduled flight between
Osaka and Tokyo.
PRC and USSR leaders had the first
conference. US successfully experimented the detonation of the first hydrogen
bomb. Dwight D. Eisenhower, a professional soldier who graduated West Point in
1915 and the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth in 1926.
became the 34th U.S. President on January 20 1953 succeeding Harry
S. Truman until John F. Kennedy too him over in January 20 1961.
All of these happenings took place only in
this one year, 1952.
In view of such incidents in the Japanese society, Keio students also were
displaying substantial leftist tendencies probably due to the incident such as
"The Bloody May Day". The Anti-Subversive Activities
Prevention Law (Hakai Katsudo Booshi Hoo- "Haboo-Hoo") which was
enacted after the Bloody Mayday further enhanced the students' extremist
tendencies. The June 1952 issue of the Mita Campus reported Keio students
including co-eds congregated on the Campus to protest against the new
"Habo-ho" legislation.
The article read " In the wake of the
recent racket of the over-joyed drunken students who celebrated Keio's win of
the baseball game which put them on the top of the Six University's Tournament
for the spring season on the campus, about 400 students gathered to oppose the
new "Habo-Hoo"" with the photo of Keio students demonstrating in
front of the House of Representative Building.
Side by side with the article on the
demonstration, there was the warning to the students by Professor Ushioda (
then Jukucho) which stated
"The anger and excitements you are now
expressing are contrary to the ideals of the university scholars who must deal
with all occurrences with composure and unbiased judgement in orderly manners.
All demeanor contrary to such will form formidable obstacles against our common
goals for the academic pursuits.
I solemnly request all Keio scholars to
cope with all extraordinary incidents with the intelligence and the character
becoming those in pursuit of the truth and wisdom, while seeking the opinions and
advice from the faculty and alumni"
.It is easily understood that the political
and social occurrences of the outside world at that time seriously impacted and
destabilized Keio students The Mita Campus issued in the preceding month
devoted the entire space on the traditional rivalry between Keio and Waseda and
the victory over Waseda in the baseball game and the rackets of the
celebration.
The feat resulted in wining the Six
Universities Tournament. The issue of the journal gave the impression to its
readers that Keio students were concerned only with baseball games,
entertainment and debaucheries.
However, the memory of the pre-war Peace
Preservation Law - or "Chian Iji-ho" which provided the excuses to
suppress all activities without "due-process" was still fresh with
the students and faculty members. The impact of the post-war U.S.- led legislation(Anti-Subversive Activities
Prevention Law - or "Habo-ho") appeared to restrict similarly the
students' academic as well as political activities proved to be stronger and
gave rise to the more lasting impressions on the young students with strong
sensitivities to the effect that the U.S. after all was not the champion of the
freedom of thought.
The June 1952 issue of the Mita Campus carried
the articles of three interviews the journal's reporters conducted with the
university's graduates placement department entitled "What Types of
Individuals are Sought After/Welcomed by Business" which reflected the
shift in the concerns of the students to seek better jobs in a relatively more
stable society without conscription where there is the better chance of
survival .
An extra was issued this year on the U.S.
Ambassador Murphy's visit to Keio Campus.
<1953＞
The significant international occurrences
in 1953 included the passing of Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin and ascendance of
his successor Georgi Maksimillanovich Malenkov to the number one position. The
further development of nuclear weapons triggered by the Soviets declaration of
the possession of the Hydrogen bombs which in turn intensified Japanese
domestic discussions on the defence. But it was relieving that the cease-fire
of the Korean hostilities was finally achieved. The news on the lighter tone was
the successful climb of Mt. Everest by the British climbers.
Under such international situations, Japan
held the general election of both Houses (House of Councilors and House of
Representatives) and the national defense became a
serious political and social issue. The
location of the facilities for the U. S. Forces to be provided in accordance
with U.S.-Japan Mutual Security Treaty was hotly debated. The most hotly
contested issue was "U.S. Forces Uchinada Military Firing Ground
Condemnation Conflict" .The subject property is near Kanazawa and the
demonstrations by the members of the labor unions and the local farmers against
the
Japanese Police was callled "Battle of
Uchinada". U.S. Forces finally gave in 1953 and left the site.
Meantime, a Japanese marathon runner, Keizo
Yamada won 1953 Boston Marathon by a then new record of 2 hours 18 minutes 51
seconds. Miss Kinuko Ito won the Third Price in the Miss Universe Contest in
the same year. These are considered to be the signs of the gradual return of the
Japanese in international events. However, with the secession of Korean
hostilities, Japanese economy slid into the stagnation.
The most popular of the students' lingo was
"Koneh" (Abbreviation of "Connection") which were used in
association with the job-hunting. Numerous student groups were still sponsoring
Dance Parties even though the events were losing the initial momentum.
This was the time when the legendary love
story "Your Name, Please " - (Kimi no Na Wa) - initially broadcast
over radio -captured the hearts of women so much that the ladies' chambers of
public bathes became empty during the program. The story was so popular, the TV
version and the movie version were made and was again on radio show.
The story was about a young couple who met
each other for the first time in one of the heavy air raids over Tokyo in 1945
and fell in love. They promised to meet after six months. It is a hackneyed
trage-love story but the situation was so real for the large portion of the
Japanese whose quiet peaceful lives and very ordinary aspirations had been
obliterated by the war.
The heroin's hair style called
"Machiko-maki"（Machiko's roll）became very popular. Also, for your reference, television
broadcasting in Japan was started on February 1, 1953 by the public
broadcasting (NHK) and the first showing was a kabuki performance. Private
commercial TV broadcasting was on August 28, 1953. So the timing was most
opportune both for the drama and the proliferation of TV as the major source of
home entertainment.
One of the original purposes for creating
The Mita Campus was to introduce the life of Japanese students to overseas audiences.
The issues in 1953 followed such ideals and
featured Keio University's academic
structures and administration system. Also the issues carried the articles on
international exchange activities on students' level and the faculty members'
overseas trips for research purposes. Also the visits of the overseas
celebrities became more frequent. Mrs. Eleanor Roosevelt, Mrs. Theodore D.
Walser of "Women's International League for Peace and Freedom"
(WILPF), the representative of the Rockefeller Foundation. and the deans and
professors of universities from various nations were visiting Keio campus and
their introduction and the purposes of the visits are meticulously carried in
the Mita Campus' articles.
This may be called the period when the
international exchange activities were at their peaks and the Mita Campus
participated in such efforts in positive manner. There were the travelogue in
Australian by a Keio student, the report of the establishment of the New York
Chapter of Mita-Kai (Keio Alumni Association), an article of the first Japanese
student (a Keio alumni) who went to study in America, European tours by
Professor Hiramatsu (Engineering-technology) and Professor Shinzo Koizumi (the
mentor of the current Heisei Emperor and the father of a Keio Alumni who was
inducted as a pilot cadet and killed in the action.) and the texts of the
presentations the professor delivered at various institutions during the trip
which made the journal interesting as well as informative.
At the same time the journal carried the
introductions of Japanese traditional arts and culture such as Noh, Kabukhi,
Flower Arrangements and Tea Ceremony in an very authoritative manners and
obvious pride in dealing with such items which needed sophistication.
The record of the occurrences of 1953 as
seen from a Keio student was presented in the form of a round table discussion
of the editorial staff. As already mentioned it was started with the
descriptions and analysis of the "Bloody Mayday" followed by the
series of the Anti-Rearmament activities, Students' Campus Festival and the
baseball Games Against Waseda. .
The December 1953 issue of the journal had
a feature on Christmas holidays at different places suchy as U.K., Hawaii, Hong
Kong and Taiwan. It also discusses the special characteristics of Christmas in
Japan which is a non-Christian (or non-anti-Christian) nation.
While the largest portion of the features
of the journal were devoted in the life of the Keio students, the editorials of
all issues dealt with the grave and serious issues of the
nation such as the General Election, and
Japan-Korea relationship from diverse angles such as the North-South military
confrontation, Yee Sung Man Line(The demarcation line unilaterally proclaimed
by the First ROK President Yee Sung Man dividing the exclusive areas for
economic exploitation on the Japan Sea by ROK and Japan which is not agreed by
Japan. ) as the Korean-related issues became more serious. The subject included
the students' political movements. These
issues were treated in serious and independent manners not imitating the
attitude of other political groups or flattering them.
The Mita Campus" staff were not taking
the international understanding and friendship for personal gains by making
personal connections with foreign visitors or just in superficial manner but to
keep their stiff upper lips with deeper research and analysis to structure and
endorse their own views.
<1954>
This was the time when Keio students could
expect to command some respect from the people in the street despite their
dirty and often worn and patched up black uniforms.
The Mita Campus issues at that time shows
the numerous dance parties they joined
exhilarating the energy of adolescence
(which was the only limitless resource they had), baseball games and the heated
arguments on politics, diplomacy, Cold War and all other occurrences and
phenomena of the world in the club room in which the seniors and freshmen
participated without reservation which cultivated the sense of independence and
objective criticisms as may be witnessed in the editorials.
1952 was the year that "No.5
Fukuryumaru", a Japanese fishing boat operating in the Pacific Ocean was
contaminated with the radioactive particulate from U.S hydrogen bomb explosion
on the high sea. The incident has been named "Incident of Deadly
Ashes" (Shi-no-hai). This shocked the people of the world immensely with
the increased production of nuclear arms. and triggered off the massive
movements of Anti Atomic and Hydrogen Arms and the World Peace.
1952 was known for another tragedy related
to the sea.. Tooya-Maru, a ferry plying between Honshuu and Hokkaido islands
between Aomori and Hakodate sank in the rough winter sea with huge casualties.
Meantime, the members of the both Houses of the Diet fought each other over the
extension of the session in spectacular brawls.
Actually the year started with an incident
totally unrelated to politics or premeditated schemes but no less deadly
incident named "Nijuubashi Jiken".
Nijuubashi is the bridge you need to go
over to enter the Inner Imperial Palace Ground. On January 2nd and 3rd
every year, people are allowed to enter the Inner Ground where the Emperor.
Empress, Crown Price and Princess and the members of the imperial family meet
them several times to meet the visiting people and deliver the brief message of
good will for the new year, The visitors signed the Guest Register.
January 2nd 1954 was a unusually
warm day for winter with sky, and about 380,000 people congregated at the
Palace Ground. But there were only 80 Police officers and 43
National Police Reserve members to control
the traffic. An old lady in the queue stumbled on the masonry of the bridge,
fell and trampled to death. The crowd following her kept on pressing unaware of
what happened in front . More than 50 people fell and 16 of them were killed
and 65 sustained injuries. Later 9 police officers were reprimanded for
negligence.
Another incident of notoriety for the year
was "Oomi Kensi Human Right Movement".
This labor dispute started on June 2nd
1954 and ended on September 16th 1954 and was considered to be the
typical case in which an anachronistic employer ignored the employees' basic
human rights in the manner that was not acceptable even under the abusive
pre-war control of the employees..
"Oomi Kensi" (Oomi Silk Spinning Co., Ltd.) was a major spinning and
weaving operator with 13,000 total employees at seven factories in Shiga
Shizuoka ,and Osaka prefectures with
sales offices in Tokyo etc. with the head office in Shiga Prefecture near Lake
Biwa.
It was a very substantial operation in the
total Japanese manufacturing industries one year after the cessation of Korean
War so there was no war logistics requirements.
The export of automobile and other
mechanical, electrical, chemical and/or any sophisticated products from Japan
did not start another ten years. (The total Employees in the Japanese
automobile industries - including the manufacturers and exporters of the parts
and components in 2010 was about 800,000.) So there was the abundant supply of
unemployed labor which enabled the management to drive hard bargain on the
employees (or so they thought and they discovered or imagined the U.S. was very
much anti-leftist so the Natsukawas decided to follow the traditional labor
policy.) Chinese textile and other
products have not entered the U.S. market yet and there was no meaningful
competition. General MacArthur appeared to be anti-leftist and assuredly
against the labor movements in Japan which was a very valuable sauces of all
kind of logistics for US military logistics including NATO sized ammo.
Meantime, Senator Joseph C. McCarthy's
anti-Communist hysteria which threatened traditional American civil liberties.-
was started on Feb.6, 1950 when the Republican National Committee proclaimed
that the major issue of the congressional election that year was "Liberty
against Socialism". The senator was
very complacent when he attacked individuals in and out of the U.S
Government for "being a Communist", particularly after he was made
Chairman of the Investigation Subcommittee of the Senate Government Operation
Committee in November 1952
During his term in this position, he made a
18 days tour of American Libraries in
Europe to investigate the subversive books in these libraries and the library
custodians were so terrified of the possible accusations, they burnt
"suspect" books on the library shelves. . On June 17,1954 and for 36
days after that the Senator was grilled by a U.S. Army Special Counsel in a
televised session of his subcommittee allegedly for giving favor to one of his
consultants when the man was inducted in the Army. McCarthy tried to retaliate
by smearing the reputation of the other Army officers and associates. The
Special Council asked the Senator
"Have you no sense of decency, sir, at last?" which became widely
known.
The
end of the career of the Senator McCarthy started on May 31, 1954 when
President Eisenhower spoke against " demagogues thirsty for personal
powers and public notice. "The coup de grace to the senator was delivered
on December 2, 1954 when the Senate voted 67-22 to condemn McCarthy for the
contempt toward a Senate subcommittee on privileges etc..
After four generations of continuously
prosperous operations the Natsukawa family that owned and managed "Oomi-Kenshi"
had never had it so good. Even the Occupation authorities supported their
attitude toward the workers and their unions. American visitors like their
products and were happy to receive souvenirs such as golden brocade materials
with rich embroideries for sashes.
But the Natsukawas、headed by Kakuji Natsukawa, then president of
the company, ignored to acknowledge and accept the new development in
Employer-labor relationship as well as the basic human right in Japan. The
government are no longer their puppets and MacArthur and McCarthy were no
longer able to support Natsukawas' excessively domineering Labor management
techniques. They not even tried to interfere with the "leftist
unions".
1946 Japanese Constitution allegedly
drafted by the US Occupation authority had Chapter 3 "Citizens' Rights and
Duties" (Articles 10 through 40) including freedom from slavish labor and
restraint, idea and conscience, religious, belief,, meetings, formation of
groups, and expression, prohibition of
censorship, freedom of choosing the
place of dwelling, removal and selection of profession, research and studies,
survival, work and labor, the workers' right to organize, and the minimum
working conditions such as wage, working hours, recesses must be provided
through laws. etc. To supplement the details, numerous labor laws such as Labor
Standards Act, The Labor Relations Act, The Labor Dispute Mediation Act. Labor
Union Act. .have been enacted and enforced .These legislation just did not
exist before Japan's defeat of August 15th 1941.
Omi Kenshi group owned a private high
school of which students were treated as the employees without the
Employer-Employee Agreement. The classes were cancelled when the workload
seemed excessive and required extra hand. If an employee is accepted by a
public high school, the company made her to transfer to the private school
otherwise she was fired. If a female employee got married, she was
automatically dismissed. The company
forced the employees to live in company dormitories where their private mails
were inspected by supervisors and they had to obtain permission when they went
out of the dormitory in order to keep them away from harmful influences.
A labor union of Oomi-Kenshi Employees was
formed on May 25 1954, and demanded the employer to recognize and bargain with
the union, to refrain from compulsory attendance to particular religious
services (a Christian sect) and to stop opening private mails, freedom of
marriage, freedom to leave the employer's premises on off-duty hours, and
establish the wage schedule etc. totaling 22 points. The company flatly
rejected all of them so 13,000 employees went into strike on June 4th
1954.
On June 14th 1954,- as Kakuji
Natsukawa, CEO of Ooomi Kenshi returned from his business/pleasure trip to the
U.S. the management hired scabs from Osaka Yakuza groups in the slums and tried
to break through the pickets at the plants. On June 18th 1954, the Justice Ministry started the
investigation on the breach of the human rights by the Employer.
On June 23rd, 1954 the Employer
fired 600 workers at Kishiwada(Osaka) plant and locked-out.
On July 3,1954, Goro Nakamura, 19-years, an
employee at Tokyo Office and an executive member of the Labor Union's Tokyo
Chapter committed suicide by jumping in front of a running train leaving a will
accusing the Natsukawas vehemently. for their abusive conducts over the
employees.
Two
days later on July 5th 1954, Kakuji Natsukawa went to Kishiwada
Plant in Osaka to inspect the property in strike. The picketing strikers
allegedly struck him on the head twice (they said they only "patted"
twice but Kakuji said the injury was so
serious that he could not attend the collective bargaining Session scheduled on
July 6. Kakuji visited the plant in a huge shiny Cadillac which an ordinary
Japanese could not have bought because the foreign exchange allocation was not
obtainable for the importation of such a luxury commodity. But the Occupation
Forces personnel were entitled to bring them in and dispose them (sell them to
the Japanese when they go back home.) and there were quite a few
"agents" who specialized in such transactions.
On July 18th,1954 The Labor
Ministry recommended both sides to negotiate for the settlement and started
investigation of the Employers' premises for the breach of Labor Standard Law.
Big Boss Kakuji blamed 10 biggest spinning companies competing against Oomi
Kensi that they are conspiring against Oomi Kensi by instigating the unions and
government agencies which may have had some truth.
On August 13th 1954, The Central
Labor Relations Commission called for mediation but rejected by both parties.
On the same day, at Fujinomiya Plant in Shizuoka, the local citizens hurled
stones at the plant and the police due to the grievances for not buying
anything locally and refusing to indemnify the damages for spilling bunker fuel
into the neighboring rice paddies.
On August 22 1954, the Employer fired the total of 69 union
leaders. On August 23, Justice Ministry indicted 32 people on the Employer
group including the Boss Natsukawa and The plant managers at seven factories.
On September 16th 1954 the
mediation draft prepared by the Central Labor Relations Commission was accepted
by the both parties and the production of the merchandise so precious to Japan
was immediately resumed. That was the end of this controversial episode.
In 1954, the Japanese economy was in
decline and the business leaders were trying to encourage the development of
international trade. On March 8th, Japan and the U.S. signed
Agreement for Purchase of Surplus Agricultural Products. Agreement on
Investment Guarantee and the Convention on the Mutual Security Agreement. On
July
1st Japan's Self Defense Force
was inaugurated. The First Osaka Trade fair was opened on April 10. On May 14th,
Japan-U.S. Warships Lend-Lease Agreement
was signed. On June 24, Japan officially joined ECAFE (Economic Commission for
Asia and Far East) of the United Nations. "Gozzila", the children's
TV program was started and was attracting the viewers' attention from .movies
to TV. But Japan's civilian business was
declining.
May 1954 issue of The Mita Campus carried
the reportage on the Ashes of Death from U.S. Experiment of Hydrogen Bombs
which contaminated No.5 Fukuryuumaru on the Bikini Atoll with the pictures of the
extensively burned native victims. The reporter demanded the American people
who are supposed to love peace and freedom to stop the
experimental detonations of Atomic and
Hydrogen bombs. and maintained that even though the experiments are necessary
for the protection of the United States and its friends of the Free World, the
experiments must be conducted in a manner which shall not affect the people
adversely. Further in its December 1954 issue, it introduced the
opinions of the leaders within Keio on the
atomic and hydrogen explosion tests
including the view of "Jukucho",
and extolled the terrors and atrocities of the experiments and their
unfathomable effects and influence on the Japanese people. The staff of the
journal had to treat this particular issue in most discrete manner in view of
the Japanese domestic political and social situations and atmosphere as well as
not to
mislead its international audiences.
Now let us turn to the new activities of
the journal in the area of reviews and commentaries of performing entertainment
- the indigenous movies and stage plays - started in 1954. The indigenous
movies and stage plays after Japan's defeat occupied incomparably exalted
status as an independent genre as art as well as common entertainment in Japan
than in 2010s.
Due to the lack of foreign exchange to
import foreign movies or theater troupes from overseas, the Japanese had no
choice but to rely on the domestic entertainment for about 15 to 20 years after
the war. Even before that, in 1937 when the Japan-China hostility commenced,
Japanese government took measures to prohibit pacifist movements and
non-chauvinist activities including viewing of foreign movies (except those
from Axis allies). In 1940, "Koodan" (plain historical narrative
recitation) and "Naniwabushi" (narrative recitation with tunes and
shamisen accompaniments) which
were common and the most popular - and
probably for the people on the lowest ladder of the society - entertainment
were prohibited to cover love stories of amorous and erotic elements, those of
nomadic gamblers and bandits, notorious whores exploited rural gentry, thieves
and robbers even the contents were exclusive Japanese, because the bureaucrats
felt such "adoration of the soft and immoral contents" would be
detrimental to the war efforts.
So, the Japanese entertainment were
subjected to rigorous censorship which restricted their contents and also their
reviews and commentaries in "Orwellian micro management" by its "thought police" (Tokko
keisatu),ordinary schools and the military (including the veteran organization)
up to the surrender on August 15, 1941 and afterwards by the Occupation Forces
and local elders who wanted no trouble (but this was more imaginary than real)
particularly with GAIJIN Gis.
After the surrender, the local people -
shop-owners-, repatriated veterans, young factory workers who had lost jobs and
now with lots of time to spare - organized local talents from among themselves
- amateur singers, tap dancers. comedians, magicians etc - to set up week-end
shows at school auditoriums or anywhere available mostly free of charge. These
were soon replaced by more professional talents.
"Itinerant theatrical troupes." were
many. The level of their talents and quality of their performances were extremely
varied. But some of them became popular. They put up stages (with or without
roofs to protect themselves from the element) built by sticks and other
materials from air-raid debris on the bombed-out open spaces. Subordinate roles
were played by the members of the families of troupe leaders who were
themselves actors/actresses of various stature before the war. They attracted
audiences from wide varieties of generations and quite a few
"troupes" were able to survive upto 1970s and established themselves
in Asakusa, Ikebukuro and other below- second-tier entertainment centers all
over Japan if they were fortunate to have good successors.
Bigger, older and better-known
entertainment companies such as Shochiku, Toei,
with more solid financial backing started to return to their traditional
happy hunting grounds.
After a decade of inactivity due to the war
and the ensuing occupation, these entertainment companies were ready to proceed
with substantive projects and the results of their efforts were accordingly
impressive. There were many reviews and commentaries on these projects,
however, the lack of the experiences on the part of the critics who contributed
the commentaries and the editors and other staff of the media had to wait for
sometime before they accumulated the satisfactory level of sophistication,
expertise and experiments.
Unfortunately, the post-war authors and
critics had to confront their own inadequacies (the lack of the new artistic or
literary products and consequentially the lack of critical works) which was caused by the vacuum when the
Japanese entertainment activities had been suspended by the chauvinistic
militarist government and later by the Occupation authorities.
Another difficulty The Mita Campus Cinema
Critics had to encounter was the more basic lack of the experience of the
critical activities for indigenous Japanese literary, theatrical, or cinematic
works by those who used the Japanese as the first language to provide the
stories and appropriate historical/social background as well as the critical
views in the languages other than Japanese such as English or other European
languages or even Asian languages. The Japanese depended on the foreigners such
as Lafcadio Hern, Lu Xan, Arthur Waley, Donald Kean etc for the introduction of
their own literary works to the international readers. Such tendency continues
even with Manga. The then
fellows of the Mita Campus launched themselves in the uncharted waters with
zeal and enthusiasm.
More specifically, the journal introduced
the reviews and commentaries on the following titles of performing arts in
1954.
April Issue; Movie "Life of Yukichi Fukuzawa,"
June Issue; Movie "Gate of Hell"
( Jigokumon by Kazuo Hasegawa and Machiko Kyo)
July Issue; Movie "Seven
Samurais" ( Directed by Akira Kurosawa)
October Issue; Movie "Twenty-four Round Eyes"
(Directed by Keisuke Kinoshita)
November Issue ;Movie "Jiro's
Tale" December Issue; Stage Play; "Osan and Mohey" 〔"Daikyooji Mukashi Koyomi" by Monzaemon
Chikamatsu)
In retrospect, all of these remained hefty
titles which were (or became) household words in Japan. Particularly "Gate of Hell" with
psycho-analytical and erotic implications of 14th century Kyoto
damaged and disorganized by the strives of Samurai factions and infested by the
robbers and "Seven Samurais", the tales of a group of seven
mercenaries of varied backgrounds who volunteered to protect an impoverished
farm village against a much larger band of robbers which was later adopted by
Clint Eastwood against the backdrop of the equally impoverished Mexican/Texan
border village were became international hits.
Through creating the reviews and
commentaries in English for the introduction and critical activities of
indigenous Japanese dramas and cinemas to the international audiences, The Mita
Campus proved itself as the pioneer in that particular fields and the contents
of such presentations on the journal were complete, mature and solid as the
fully developed literary exercise rather than ostentatious display of foreign
language skills by amateur college students.
Apart from the cultural activities, The
Mita Campus continued to carry the serial entitled "The Voice of the
Youth". which featured the topics such as the fear of the interminablel
Atomic and Hydrogen bombs tests which were mostly conducted in the Pacific
Ocean, the criticism against the formation and expansion of the Self Defense
Force and the policies of the successive cabinets and the problems associated
with the
job-hunting by the Co-eds after graduation.
"The Voice of the Youth" was not just the opinions of the staff of
the journal but it provided the opportunities to all Keio students to air their
views on all types of issues without reservation.
December 1954 issue of The Mita Campus was
the 50th anniversary commemorative issue since its start in June
1946 and various celebrities both in Japan and overseas sent the felicitations
on the occasion which were carried in the issue.
<1955>
In 1955, The Mita Campus had its space - it
was a space rather than a room or rooms - where the staff congregated for all
purposes of creating the journal. It was on the second floor of the now extinct
student hall, a two-story wooden structure in somewhat dilapidated
conditions in which other student groups
were accommodated. The printing shop - which The Mita Campus contracted to do
the type-picking, plate making and pressing- had a grandiose name of
"Pacific Press" located in a back alley near Imperial Hotel. The
staff walked all the way- which took less than one hour - from Mita Campus to the printing shop for
proof-reading. The manuscripts had to be type-written for the ease of counting
the words which was the tasks of the staff. The authors who could type his/her
own manuscript- even with a single finger - had advantage over those who could
not type.
Because of its location with so many small
clients such as bars and restaurants always trying to improve their menus etc,
and the scarcity of the printers who could offer English printing services
"Pacific Press" appeared to be reasonably prosperous.- or busy. Computers and e-mails were unknown. This was
even before the word-processor and were
editing involved the tremendous amount of re-typing.
The subjects of the worries and the
discussions were still "Bikini Atoll Nuclear Tests Contamination" and
"Rearmament" which never seemed to go away. In the international
theatre, the new topics were Sir Winston Churchill's retirement from the U.K.
politics. Dismissal of USSR Premier Georgi Malenkov succeeded by Bulganin.
Conclusion of Warsaw Pact which solidified the military alliance of the East
European countries under USSR, the convocation of Asian-African Conference
which carried the
hope of the emergence of the Third World
power. Domestically, the right wing and
the left wing of the Socialist Party merged together while the fragmentary
conservative parties consolidated themselves so that the two-party system i.e.
the Conservative vs. the Reformers- at least in appearance only was finally
materialized. Some progress was seen in Japan-USSR Peace Treaty negotiation
under Hatoyama (who had been "Red Purged" by MacArthur) Regime and
the intensification of Japan-PRC exchanges.
Anti‐military facilities demonstrations typically those against the
establishment of Sunagawa Base intensified.
1955 was the year when the Morinaga Baby
Milk poisoning was revealed as the first case of the industrial pollution. Jazz (Tennessee Waltz and September Song
were most notable) and Mambo became big booms and Mambo Looks and Mambo Tribes
were ubiquitous.
College entrance was becoming harder and
harder. Many high school grads could not make it in the year they finished high
schools so people started calling the school system
6:3;4 instead of 6:3:3 (which was the new
system imposed on by the Occupation Force.)
Education Ministry prohibited high schools
to offer unofficial cramming sessions to the
Graduates who could not make it and the
total revamping of the school system was contemplated. Private schools offering
K through Post Graduate courses became popular. College baseball games were
enlivened by the shouting elementary school kids
who were called "Secondary Cheer
Leaders".
Professor Joan Robinson (1903-1983),, one
of the then most illustrious post Keynesian Economists (monetary economics) at
Cambridge University paid a visit to Mita Campus to present her views on the
compatibility of Keynesian and Marxist economic systems to the members of the
faculty and students.
She was a copious writer and was the
promoter of Keynes ' General Theory writing especially on its employment
implications in the Midst of the Great Depression in 1936 and 1937. Her major
works included "Economics of Imperfect Competition, 1933" , "An
Essay on Marxian Economics, 1942" (which treated Karl Marx as an economist
rather than a controversial political demagogue) and "The Accumulation of
Capital 1956". She also visited
China several times and wrote "China; An Economic Perspective 1958",
"The Cultural Revolution in China, 1969" and "Economic
Management in China 1975/1976" in which she praised the Cultural
Revolution. She also made a remark on North Korea saying "sooner or later
the country must be reunited by absorbing the South into Socialism." These
statements apparently hampered her eligibility to Nobel Prize for Economics.
The campus was also honored by the visit of
Ms. Roberta Lowitz
Grant, the widow of the late Professor John Dewey ( the professor's first wife,
Ms. Alice Chipman passed away in 1927 leaving six children. The professor's
second marriage took place in 1946,
when he was 90 years of age. They adapted
two children. )
Professor Dewey (1859-1952) taught at
Universities of Michigan, Minnesota, Chicago and Columbia, was the presidents
of American Psychological Association and of American Philosophical
Association. He is considered particularly in the U.S. academia to be one of
the great thinkers of the world in the subjects of pedagogy, philosophy of
mind, epistemology, logic, philosophy of science and political theory. His
pragmatic approaches to ethics, aesthetics, and religion have also remained
influential. He traveled widely mainly including Japan and China in 1919 to
1921 and also visited Turkey (1924) and USSR (1928) mainly to make
recommendations on educational policy.
The details as well as the academic results
of the Professor's trip to the Far East were not documented in detail as in the
case of other countries but he must have been influential in forming the
organizations and curriculum of the universities endowed by the U.S. supports
in China. But his activities in Japan at that time appears to be not so much
documented. The difference of the international status of Japan and its
educational policies in 1919 and 1955 is an arguable issue by itself.
April 1955 issue of The Mita Campus carried
the report by one of the journal's staff's
roaming trip to the U.S. at the time the country was at its zenith of
prosperity. It gives a vivid views of a alien nation through the eyes of a
Japanese student with the delicate sensitivities of a youth who had been
confined in the insularity - real and psychological - of the wartime and
ensuing Occupation Era as well as the impressions of the real U.S. with its
lives of the ordinary people and society
- as well as those of the world outside of Japan- he created.
June 1955 issue of the journal presented
the review of the relationship between Keio students and Ginza area with the
analysis of the results of opinion polls etc. Since the prewar years Ginza -
which is not far from Mita campus- has
been associated in various manners with Keio alumna (many of whom lived or did
business in the area) and students mainly for entertainment and socializing
with the backdrop of the rows of fashionable and expensive retailers,
restaurants and places of debauchery. The review was an interesting social
report of the area at that time until other areas such as Shinjuku, Shibuya,
Aoyama, Harajuku, Roppongi and other areas grew and attained their respective
atmosphere of sophistication in the last 50 years or so.
1955 was the year when "Student
English Newspaper Association" (SENA) was organized by the initiative of
The Mita Campus. This was a nation-wide affiliation of the student journals
published in English. According to July 1955 issue of The Mita Campus there
were seven founding members, i.e. Waseda, Aoyama Gakuin, Rikkyo (St. Paul),
.Meiji, Joochi (Sophia), Kansei Gakuin and Keio.
The purpose of SENA is to provide the forum
where the opinions of the youth can be freely published and promote the
expansion and proliferation of student English-language journals nation-wide
for the unrestricted exchange of the inter-collegiate views both in and outside
of Japan. It can be safely assumed that the original prime objective of The
Mita Campus proposed by its founding members was the free exchange of students
views on a level playing field to promote the consensus of the World Peace.
October 1955 issue of The Mita Campus is
already introducing the summaries of the
editorials and views of the student journals (English or otherwise) from
Hokkaido University and other private universities in Tokyo. In the same issue, the journal's editorial
handled political issues such as the Japanese Rearmament, Japan-USSR Peace
Treaty negotiation, and the mitigation of the international tension in which
the positions taken by the journal is fully disclosed without reservation.
The journal issued an extra for the
semi-annual baseball match with Waseda in brownish print. Keio players at that
time included Motoji Fujita as the ace hurler, Sasaki, a current baseball
commentator as the captain of the team and Moroki as the
leading bat man.
End of the Chapter II
In order to supplement the original
Japanese manuscript, the translator relied upon
the following as reference.
1 日本史小年表 笠原一男・安田元久編 山川出版社.
2. 日米関係史 五百旗頭真 編 有斐閣ブックス
3．外務省監修 日本外交百年小史 （昭和33年改定版） 山田書院
4. The Almanac of American History; Edited
by Arthur M. Schlesinger, Barns & Noble
5. A
Dictionary of Contemporary American History; by Stanley Hochman &
Eleanor
Hochman; A
Signet Book
6, American Caesers by Nigel Hamilton; Yale
University Books
7. 最新英語情報事典第２版 堀内克明・斎田一路・高田正純、S.B. Flexner 小学館
8．ニュ－スに出るビジネス英単語 日経國際ニュ－スセンター 日経BP社
9．Time Almanac 2011 powered by
Encyclopedia Britannica
その他Wikipedia etc
