Anti-monarchism in Japan explained

Anti-monarchism in Japan (天皇制廃止論, Ten'nōsei haishi-ron, lit. "Emperor system abolition theory") or anti-Emperor system (反天皇制, Han ten'nōsei) was a minor force during the twentieth century.

History

In 1908, a letter allegedly written by Japanese revolutionaries denied the Emperor's divinity, and threatened his life.^[1] In 1910, Kōtoku Shūsui and 10 others plotted to assassinate the Emperor.^[2] In 1923, 1925 and 1932 Emperor Hirohito survived assassination attempts.^[3]

After World War II, the communists were antagonistic to the Emperor. The Japanese Communist Party demanded the abolition of the emperor system.^[4] They boycotted the formal opening of the National Diet in 1949 because of Emperor Shōwa's presence.^[5] The Japanese Communist Party continued to be antagonistic after Emperor Shōwa's death in 1989.^[6]

During the Imperial visits to Otsu, Japan in 1951, and Hokkaido in 1954, Communist posters and handbills antagonistic to the Imperial Family Members were plastered in the cities.^{[7] [8]}

In 1951, three thousand students in Kyoto University protested against Emperor Shōwa's continued reign.^[9]

See also

• Japanese dissidence during the Shōwa period
• Assassination attempts on Hirohito
• Aki no Arashi
• Hantenren

External links

• Web site: Remove Hirohito, Tokyo Reds Ask. The Pittsburgh Press. October 10, 1945.
• Web site: REMOVE HIROHITO IS CRY OF FREED JAP COMMUNISTS. Toronto Daily Star . October 10, 1945.
• Web site: Anti-Russian Organization Rises In Japan; Red Liaison Officer Says That American Occupation Too Soft. Times Daily. October 9, 1945 .
• Web site: COMMUNISTS OUT TO GET HIROHITO. The Spokesman-Review . November 13, 1945.
• Web site: CAN"T HAVE DEMOCRACY AND HIROHITO, JAPS SAY. Toronto Daily Star. October 4, 1945.
• Web site: MacArthur Ousts High Jap Official, Fires Police Heads. The Daily Times. October 3, 1945.
• Web site: BAN FREEDOM FOR JAP REDS. The Milwaukee Sentinel. October 3, 1945. July 20, 2015. April 29, 2016. https://web.archive.org/web/20160429125555/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1368&dat=19451003&id=bVoaAAAAIBAJ&sjid=DQ0EAAAAIBAJ&pg=6878,1552182&hl=en. dead.
• Web site: JAPAN TO URGE TRADE OF SILK FOR VITAL FOOD To Ask Permission for Barter System; Communists Would Get Rid of Mikadoism. The Montreal Gazette . October 4, 1945.
• Web site: Japanese Communists Censure Hirohito Tours. The Tuscaloosa News. March 4, 1946.

Notes and References

1. Web site: PLOT AGAINST THE MIKADO. ALLEGED ANARCHIST ASSOCIATION. AMONG JAPANESE IN AMERICA.. Evening News. 17 January 1908.
2. Web site: Kōtoku Shūsui . Encyclopædia Britannica.
3. Book: Japan and the High Treason Incident. Masako Gavin, Ben Middleton. Routledge. Aug 21, 2013.
4. Web site: Japanese Communist Party Asks End of Feudal System. Berkeley Daily Gazette . February 23, 1946 .
5. Web site: Anti-Hirohito Diet Boycott. The Sydney Morning Herald. March 21, 1949.
6. Web site: JAPAN'S ROLE: A MILESTONE; Hirohito's Death Puts Focus on New Identity. The New York Times . January 8, 1989 .
7. Web site: Horrified Citizens Scrub Walls of Opposition As Hirohito Visits. Eugene Register-Guard. November 16, 1951.
8. Web site: Hirohito, Wife Tour Island. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. August 9, 1954.
9. Web site: 3,000 Leftist Students Heckle Japanese Emperor. Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . November 13, 1951.