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35-400: Minpon Shugi is one form of democracy that the political scientist Yoshino Sakuzō put forward in the book "Kensei no hongi o toite sono yushu no bi o nasu no michi o ronzu" ( 憲政の本義を説いて其有終の美を済すの途を論ず ). Yoshino Sakuzō defined Minpon Shugi as "the policy in exercising political power of valuing the profit, happiness, and opinions of the people." This has two main points: First,"the ultimate end of

70-585: A rōnin and studied under Confucianist Kinoshita Jun'an . He was offered a post by the largest han , that of Kaga Domain , but he offered the position to a fellow samurai. In 1693, Hakuseki was called up to serve by the side of Manabe Akifusa as a "brain" for the Tokugawa shogunate and shogun Tokugawa Ienobu . He went on to displace the official Hayashi advisers to become the leading confucianist for Ienobu and Tokugawa Ietsugu . While some of Hakuseki's policies were still carried out after Ienobu's death, after

105-543: A communist movement would need to be a broad based movement with support from both workers and farmers. It also opposed the Kōza-ha (lecture faction) which followed the Comintern . Yamakawa withdrew from active politics in 1931, but was nevertheless thrown in prison in 1937 when the government was clamping down on dissent after invading China. He spent the war years in prison. After his release in 1945, Yamakawa became an adviser to

140-489: A constitution. Yoshino considered that it may not be evil because it does not reject the monarchical system. However, both kinds of Minshu Shugi have a problem with where they placed sovereignty. Japan at the time of Yoshino's writing was imperial system, and these definitions of sovereignty were incompatible with that system. On the other hand, since Minpon Shugi, democracy based on monarchical sovereignty, "is not contingent on where legal theory locates sovereignty," which means

175-464: A position at a newspaper he was editing, but Yamakawa declined and moved back to his hometown. A few years later, disillusioned with his work, he contacted Kōtoku, who again offered him a position. This time he accepted it. He moved back to Tokyo and started working at the Heimin Shimbun in early 1907, where he met lifelong friends Sakai Toshihiko and Arahata Kanson . He became a syndicalist under

210-718: A series of economic policies designed to improve the shogunate's standing. By minting new and better quality currency, inflation was controlled. Calculating from trade records, Hakuseki deduced that fully 25% of gold and 75% of silver in Japan had been spent on trades with foreign countries. Concerned that Japan's national resources were at risk, he implemented a new trade policy, the Kaihaku Goshi Shinrei (海舶互市新例), to control payments to Chinese and Dutch merchants by demanding that instead of precious metals, products like silk, porcelain, and dried seafoods should be used for trading. However,

245-661: Is good for the people in general. There are multiple possible translations of “democracy” in Japanese. Most people translate “democracy” into Minshu Shugi ( 民主主義 ), and also Japan follows a Minshu Shugi political system currently. However, at the time of Yoshino's writing, Minshu Shugi was thought to be contravened due to incompatibility with the imperial system. Because the Dai-Nippon Teikoku Kenpō (大日本帝国憲法) (Meiji Constitution) specified Constitutional Monarchy , people criticized it, saying that "democracy" entails sovereignty of

280-577: Is remembered in Japan today for being instrumental in introducing Marxism and socialism to Japanese thinkers. Yamakawa was born in Kurashiki in southern Honshu in 1880. He enrolled in the Doshisha high school in Kyoto , where he converted to Christianity . However, he did not finish his studies and dropped out because he was dissatisfied with the way the school was restructuring itself to receive accreditation from

315-465: The 6th shogun, Tokugawa Ietsugu, died and Tokugawa Yoshimune 's rule began, Hakuseki left his post to begin his career as a prolific writer of Japanese history and Occidental studies. He was buried in Asakusa (current day Taitō, Tokyo ), Hoonji temple but was later moved to Nakano, Tokyo , Kotokuji temple. Under the top Rōjū , Abe Seikyo , with strong support from Ienobu, he launched Shōtoku no chi ,

350-461: The Comintern tried to establish relations with Japanese socialists, Yamakawa was one of the first ones contacted. He was however initially reluctant to establish relations that could land him back in prison. In 1922, as younger converts to Bolshevism were becoming impatient, Yamakawa along with Sakai and Arahata agreed to found an illegal Communist Party. Yamakawa wrote the essay "A change of course for

385-514: The Ministry of Education. He moved to Tokyo , where he helped to write an article on the Crown Prince 's marriage that got him sentenced to two years in jail. This was the first time anyone was sentenced for lèse-majesté in Japan and lent Yamakawa immediate notoriety. In jail, Yamakawa began familiarizing himself with Marxism . After his release he met the socialist Kōtoku Shūsui , who offered him

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420-511: The Proletarian Movement" in August 1922, which was a manifesto for the new Communist Party. In it, he criticized the anarchist faction which had been dominant within the socialist and labour movement in Japan for being idle dreamers who failed to obtain anything concrete that benefited the working class. He advocated direct political action and organization of the working class. The document was

455-425: The beginning of the end for anarchists in Japan and a year later, when its main leader Ōsugi Sakae was murdered by a military policeman, anarchism ceased to be an active political force in Japan. Yamakawa's approach was first and foremost practical. He wanted a broad socialist movement focusing on practical gains. This approach later became known as Yamakawaism and was contrasted by Fukumotoism . Yamakawa became

490-604: The beneficial effects of this policy were limited as the trade of precious metals from Tsushima and Satsuma was uncontrolled by the bakufu . He also simplified rituals for welcoming the Joseon dynasty's ambassadors, in the face of opposition from the Tsushima Confucianist Amenomori Hōshu . Hakuseki applied the mandate of heaven to both the emperor and the shōgun . Since there had been no revolution to change Japan's basic institutions, he argued that

525-474: The emperor can retain sovereignty. Therefore, the principle of Minpon Shugi does not clash with the monarchical system. When Yoshino was writing his articles, there were some criticisms against Minpon Shugi. Yoshino selected some of those opinions and refuted them in his writing. At first, people castigated the idea of Minpon Shugi itself. Yoshino argued that some people do not distinguish between Minpon Shugi and Minshu Shugi. Also, Yoshino said that "it's true that

560-453: The exercise of political power should be the good of the people." In the ancient world, the people were only treated as tools for the survival and prosperity of powerful politicians, and their retention of power. Since the Middle Age, the center of politics became the warrior class, and the people were just the foundation. Even though some politicians at that time, such as Arai Hakuseki , argued

595-455: The history of constitutional government is full of revolutions" in response to the people who said Minpon Shugi is allied with Minshu Shugi and incompatible with monarchy because it has revolutionary tendencies. However, he added "Regardless of the revolutionary origins, trying to get rid of them is wrong" because "progress requires strenuous effort." Some also felt apprehensive about the foundations of Yoshino's Minpon Shugi. Some pointed out that

630-443: The ideas of Yoshino. Ōsugi Sakae strongly opposed these ideas, saying "Everywhere it's vague. It's full of contradictions. It's incoherent." They particularly criticized how Yoshino separated "place of sovereignty" and "exercise of sovereignty". Arai Hakuseki Arai Hakuseki ( 新井 白石 , March 24, 1657 – June 29, 1725) was a Confucianist , scholar-bureaucrat , academic, administrator, writer and politician in Japan during

665-420: The influence of Kōtoku only a month later, but was sent to jail again in 1908. After being released a few years later, Yamakawa moved back home once more and dropped all socialist activities because of government suppression. Yamakawa resumed writing in 1916. The Russian Revolution caught him and most Japanese socialists by surprise, he did however gradually convert from anarchism to Bolshevism . When agents of

700-517: The interests of the people. Even if it were to come into conflict with the Imperial Family's interests, Minpon Shugi just makes a statement about the general policy of the sovereign, it does not lay down a rigid law. Moreover, he claimed that the sovereign should treat the people in a good way in general, so the only people who would disagree are the privileged ones. People suggested that Yoshino's statement, "Policies should be decided with input from

735-547: The middle of the Edo period , who advised the shōgun Tokugawa Ienobu . His personal name was Kinmi or Kimiyoshi (君美). Hakuseki (白石) was his pen name. His father was a Kururi han samurai Arai Masazumi (新井 正済). Hakuseki was born in Edo and from a very early age displayed signs of genius . According to one story, at the age of three Hakuseki managed to copy a Confucian book written in Kanji , character by character. Because he

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770-592: The most influential theoretician of the small Communist Party which, while illegal, was popular among left wing students and academics. In 1924 however, he opted to dissolve the party, arguing that the time was not right for a Communist Party in Japan. In 1927 Yamakawa and others established a loosely organised Marxist group, the Rōnō-ha (Labour-Farmer Faction), which influenced socialist and communist activists through writings and discussions while refraining from open political action. The Rōnō-ha got its name from its belief that

805-445: The necessity of love for the people, it was only for the sake of the upper classes. Yoshino considered that these structural ideas that sacrifice the human dignity for the interests of a few powerful people were awful and should be rejected. Second, "in the final determination of policies, the people's opinions must be valued highly." It should be up to the people to decide the purpose of politics because people can understand better what

840-507: The other is not necessarily dangerous. The first, which Yoshino called "absolute popular sovereignty," was defined as sovereignty lying with the people naturally. This standpoint denies the monarchical system because it would mean the monarch derived authority from the people. Yoshino considered it to be clear that this kind of “Minshu Shugi” was a dangerous concept. In the second, which Yoshino called "popular sovereignty by mutual consent," popular sovereignty has been decided by interpretation of

875-440: The people's opinion" goes against the spirit of the monarchist constitution. Yoshino rebutted this criticism, and said it was also due to misunderstanding. The sovereign still has full sovereignty in law. Minpon Shugi only describes the policy of the sovereign in the exercise of its sovereignty. Some criticized Minpon Shugi for imposing restrictions on the actions of the sovereign. Yoshino refuted this criticism, saying "The actions of

910-515: The people. One of the most important elements of Minpon Shugi is that Yoshino flexibly adapted “democracy” to Japanese society at that time. The most crucial difference between Minshu Shugi and Minpon Shugi is the definition of where sovereignty lies. Minshu Shugi is written in Chinese Characters as "民主主義". The difference between the two nouns is one Chinese Character 主 and 本. 主[Shu] means both "the first concern" and "sovereignty", represented by

945-422: The people. Yoshino stated that there are at least two meanings of "democracy". First, “in law the sovereignty of the nation resides in the people.” Second, “in politics the fundamental end of the exercise of the nation’s sovereignty should be the people.” He described that Minpon Shugi is a translation of the second meaning of “democracy”, and therefore it is different from Minshu Shugi in which sovereignty resides in

980-400: The principle, "The goal of politics is the good of the people in general" would go against the Japanese spirit of loyalty due to conflict between the good of the Imperial Family and the people's good. However, Yoshino claimed there is no contradiction between the Imperial Family's interests and the good of the people because there is only one Imperial Family in Japan and it does not conflict with

1015-415: The same Chinese character in Japanese, and 本 [Pon] means "the base". So, the direct translation from Chinese characters of the word "Minshu Shugi" is "the principle that sovereignty resides with the people", and "Minpon Shugi" is "the principle that the people form the base". In Yoshino's theory, Minshu Shugi, democracy based on popular sovereignty, also has two kinds, and one should be completely avoided but

1050-476: The shogun was subordinate to the emperor and that in showing good governance, moral fortitude and respect to the emperor a shogun proved that he held divine right . He also traced Tokugawa family roots back to the Minamoto clan and thus to a line of imperial descent in order to show that Ieyasu's political supremacy had been fitting. To strengthen the shogun's power and maintain national prestige he proposed changing

1085-532: The sovereign have already been restricted, since the Constitution is a limitation," and "Limitations are in fact desirable and moral." Furthermore, some well-educated men claimed the people in general were not intelligent enough to join politics. Yoshino said because of educational progress, the intelligence of the people became quite high. Additionally, people just need to have some common sense to make decisions; they were not being asked to create new policy. There

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1120-479: The title to koku-ō – nation-king. Hakuseki's published writings encompass 237 works in 390 publications in 6 languages and 3,163 library holdings. Hitoshi Yamakawa Hitoshi Yamakawa ( Japanese : 山川 均 , Hepburn : Yamakawa Hitoshi , December 20, 1880 – March 23, 1958) was a Japanese revolutionary socialist who played a leading role in founding the Japanese Communist Party in 1922. He

1155-507: Was also a founding member of the Rono-ha (Labour-Farmer Faction), a group of Marxist thinkers opposed to the Comintern . His most famous work was the essay "A change of course for the proletarian movement" ( 無産階級運動の方向転換 , Musan kaikyū undō no hōkō tenkan ) where he advocated direct political action and better coordination within the labour movement , while criticising the anarchist movement for failing to achieve any lasting results. He

1190-557: Was born on the same year as the Great Fire of Meireki and because he was hot tempered and his brow would crease looking like 火 or "fire", he was affectionately called Hi no Ko (火の子) or child of fire . He was a retainer of Hotta Masatoshi , but after Masatoshi was assassinated by Inaba Masayasu , the Hotta clan was forced to move from Sakura to Yamagata then to Fukushima and the domain's income declined. Hakuseki offered to leave, becoming

1225-538: Was thought that the general will, the will of the people does not exist, it does not actively move in one direction; however, according to Yoshino, the will of the people exists, and while it may sway that will, the essential direction is the same. After Yoshino's book, "On the Meaning of Constitutional Government and the Method by which it can be Perfected", several socialists such as Ōsugi Sakae and Yamakawa Hitoshi criticized

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