Asian Communism and the Reverse Course. American Occupation Initial Purposes Disarmament Democratization Conduct MacArthur as SCAP Thin US layer Use Japanese.

Asian Communism and the “Reverse Course”

American Occupation

Initial PurposesDisarmament

Democratization

ConductMacArthur as SCAP

Thin US layer

Use Japanese bureaucracy

Contrast with Iraq

Shift in US Thinking

Interplay of foreign/domestic issuesForeign factors

Fear of Soviet CommunismRise of Mao and CCP in ChinaNorth/South split in KoreaSoutheast Asia as well

US Shift (Cont)

Domestic Factors (partial response to foreign “threat’)

Cost factors in OccupationRepublican criticism of Truman administrationChina LobbyUltimately, McCarthyism

Upshot

US changeFrom idealistic democratic Japan

To a renewed and economically viable Japan

“Bulwark of democracy” in Asia

Requires rebuilding and not reforming

Reverse Course

Breath of fresh air for conservativesShock of purge of government and business leaders, constitution, growth of left

Disappointment of leftStruggle into 1960s, effecting student movement, large segment of society

Seeds of postwar system The Japan with which we are familiar

Shift unmistakable by 1948 Pronounced after Mao’s victory in 1949

Political ImplicationsDepurging of right

Many returned to civil, political lifeKishi Nobusuke most famous example

Now, “Red Purge”Thousands fired from labor unions, businessesMany jailedEspecially hurt labor

Conservative Revival

Left-wing coalition governments lose outYoshida Shigeru in power 1948-1954

Established the conservative political base, still unbrokenCemented US-Japan relationship

Sticking point: Article IX

Economic Implications

Dodge Line adopted to facilitate revival

3/19/49 Joseph M. Dodge in JapanStem inflation, balance budget

Reduce money supply

Set 360 yen to dollar

Bitterly opposed500,000 lost jobs

Deflation

But successful in stabilizing economy

Zaibatsu Policy Reversal

No longer attacked: cosmetic changes

in ownership patternsStill around today (keiretsu), neo-zaibatsuIrony: great US business support for not breaking up zaibatsu

Japanese Labor

Shift from SCAP pro-labor stance

MacArthur forbids May Day demo ‘47

Labor loses support of SCAP and JapanNever becomes a political force in Japan

Conservative gov’t. repression

Key Role of Korean War, 1950-1953

June 1950:National Police Force of 75,000 (later SDF)

Helped speed San

Francisco Treaty

Sept. 8, 1951

“Gift from the Gods”

Economic boom

Ending the Occupation

Occupation ends formally 4/28/52

De facto earlier as SCAP role ceased

due to war

Soon followed by US-Japan Security Treaty

Japan as US clientUS bases in JapanNuclear umbrella

Assessing the Occupation I

Mixed review

Better than anyone expected

Uniqueness of the experiment Compare with Iraq?

Confidence/arrogance of US

An unintended consequence Founding fathers of Japanolgy

Like Peace Corps and Mormon missions

Assessment II

Positive side:Constitution—no amendments to a foreign constitutionLand Reform—support for LDP

Negative:Zaibatsu busting—Mitsubishi et al still with us

Assessment II

Mixed assessment:EducationLaborLocal government

Economic recovery still stunningThe human connection still stands out Popcorn on the Ginza and “Sayonara”Question for the semester: How democratic is Japan? What is the US credit/blame for that?