Table Of ContentDemocracy in Occupied Japan
This book offers a detailed assessment of the legacies of the U.S. occupa-
tion on Japanese politics and society, discussing the long-term impact of
the occupation on contemporary Japan. Focusing on two central themes –
democracy and the interplay of U.S.-initiated reforms and Japan’s endoge-
nous drive for democratization and social justice – the contributors from
both the United States and Japan, address key questions:
• How did the U.S. authorities and the Japanese people define demo-
cracy?
• To what extent did Americans impose their notions of democracy on
Japan?
• How far did the Japanese pursue impulses toward reform, rooted in
their own history and values?
• Which reforms were readily accepted and internalized, and which
were ultimately subverted by the Japanese as impositions from
outside?
These questions are tackled by exploring the dynamics of the reform
process from the three perspectives of innovation, continuity and compro-
mise, specifically determining the effect that this period had on Japanese
social, economic, and political understanding. The book critically exam-
ines previously unexplored issues that influenced postwar Japan such as
the effect of labor and healthcare legislation, textbook revision, and
minority policy. Illuminating contemporary Japan, its achievements,
its potential and its quandaries, Democracy in Occupied Japan will appeal to
students and scholars of Japanese–U.S. relations, Japanese history and
Japanese politics.
Mark E. Caprio is a member of the Department of Law and Politics,
Rikkyo University. Yoneyuki Sugita is Associate Professor of American
History at Osaka University of Foreign Studies, Japan.
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Democracy in Occupied Japan
The U.S. occupation and
Japanese politics and society
Edited by Mark E. Caprio
and Yoneyuki Sugita
First published 2007
by Routledge
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Simultaneously published in the USA and Canada
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© 2007 Selection and editorial matter, Mark E. Caprio and Yoneyuki
Sugita; individual chapters, the contributors
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ISBN 0–203–96425–X Master e-book ISBN
ISBN10: 0-415-41589-6 (hbk)
ISBN10: 0-203-96425-X (ebk)
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Contents
List of contributors xi
Preface xii
Abbreviations xiii
Introduction: the U.S. occupation of Japan –
innovation, continuity, and compromise 1
M A R K E . C A P R I O A N D Y O N E Y U K I S U G I T A
1 Feeding the Japanese: food policy, land reform, and
Japan’s economic recovery 26
S T E V E N J . F U C H S
2 Occupation policy and the Japanese fisheries
management regime, 1945–1952 48
S A Y U R I G U T H R I E - S H I M I Z U
3 Protective labor legislation and gender equality: the
impact of the occupation on Japanese working women 67
M A H O T O Y O D A
4 The impact of the occupation on crime in Japan 89
H . R I C H A R D F R I M A N
5 Educational reform and history textbooks in occupied
Japan 120
Y O S H I K O N O Z A K I
6 Universal health insurance: the unfinished reform of
Japan’s healthcare system 147
Y O N E Y U K I S U G I T A
