Unfulfilled Pacifism: Peace Movements in Postwar Japan

抄録

Peace movements in postwar Japan appeared as early as around 1950 under growing American-Soviet confrontations. Though the newly enacted peace constitution brought favorable conditions for peace movements, Japan’s conservative ruling class had little enthusiasm for postwar democracy while surrendering to US demand for military bases and Japan’s rearmament. Thus, postwar Japanese peace movements have taken it upon themselves to pursue peace and democracy. This double task has often thrown peace movements into political difficulties in maintaining their coherence and autonomy.

Successful peace movements in 1950s like anti-US base struggles in Uchinada and Sunagawa and the nationwide campaign against atomic and hydrogen bombs had in common a coherent sense of purpose among the participants. Meanwhile, the struggle against the revision of the Japan-US Security Treaty in 1960 turned the largest political protest ever, and therefore, although its goal was frustrated, the government was thereafter obliged to take into consideration Japanese people’s strong pacifist sentiment. Yet, peace groups in the end fell apart with bitter antagonism among them. They had never agreed upon what security arrangement was desirable and possible in place of the proposed revision of the treaty.

The low-key defense policy after 1960 and the proliferating peace culture through media, education and municipalities gave birth to the de facto national identity of a ‘peace state.’ However, this ‘peace state’ has left two serious problems unresolved. While the ‘peace state’ relies on a large US military presence, Japan has not yet achieved the historical reconciliation with neighboring nations. Second, a curious coexistence between the pacifist constitution and the security pact has been possible only through the concentration of major US military bases in Okinawa. Japan’s ‘peace state’ has actually been an isolated one country pacifism with an unjust security regime. Peace movements have not yet effectively come to grips with these problems