SNA (Tokyo) — In 1931, Reijiro Wakatsuki again took over the post of prime minister from a stronger predecessor, but this time the deck was in any case stacked against any prospect for political success. The nation was sinking into the depths of the Great Depression, and the government lost control of young officers in the Imperial Army, who launched a conquest of Manchuria which had never been authorized by Tokyo. Transcript On April 14, 1931, Reijiro Wakatsuki returned to office as prime minister of Japan. As had been the case five years earlier when he had become prime minister for the fir ..read more

SNA (Tokyo) — From 1929-1931, the Lion Prime Minister Osachi Hamaguchi brought strength and determination to the more liberal forces in Japan, effectively staring down a challenge from radical officers in the Imperial Navy. His economic policy regarding the Great Depression was equally strong and decisive, but unfortunately quite mistaken. Before his error had become entirely clear, however, he was wounded and ultimately killed by an assassin’s bullet. Transcript On July 2, 1929, Osachi Hamaguchi became prime minister of Japan. He was sometimes called the Lion Prime Minister for his dignity ..read more

  SNA (Tokyo) — From 1927-1929, Imperial Army-officer-turned-politician Giichi Tanaka attempted to guide Japan with a firm hand, aiming to crush radicalism at home and to use the iron fist in China. This hardline turn was resisted on many fronts, but the biggest problem emerged from the Army itself, which was slipping away from political control. Transcript On April 20, 1927, Giichi Tanaka became prime minister of Japan. Tanaka was the fourth and final direct protege of the late Genro Aritomo Yamagata to rise to the highest office, and while he shared the conservative outlook of his pred ..read more

SNA (Tokyo) — From 1926-1927, Reijiro Wakatsuki led Japan’s ruling party, but his tendency to shy away from confrontations helped put him in a weaker position than his predecessor. As the new Emperor Hirohito began his reign, a careless comment by the finance minister triggered a run on banks. Transcript On January 30, 1926, Reijiro Wakatsuki became prime minister of Japan. He possessed a long and distinguished career as a law scholar, bureaucrat, and minister, and upon Takaaki Kato’s death he had little difficulty becoming his successor as leader of the Constitutional Politics Association an ..read more

SNA (Tokyo) — From 1924-1926, Takaaki Kato led an administration which marked the pinnacle of the period of “Taisho Democracy.” Its crowning achievement was the passage of a law granting voting rights to all male Japanese age 25 or older, regardless of economic status. Transcript On June 11, 1924, Takaaki Kato became prime minister of Japan. His arrival marked the return of political party government after two years of non-party Cabinets, and it was more broadly a victory for democracy within the Japanese political system. Since Kato’s party did not have its own majority in the House of Repre ..read more

SNA (Tokyo) — In early 1924, bureaucrat Keigo Kiyoura reluctantly agreed to become premier, but the frustration of the political parties about once again being passed over created a challenge which Kiyoura was not able to tame. Transcript On January 7, 1924, Keigo Kiyoura became prime minister of Japan. He had been considered for the office several times before, and he came particularly close a decade earlier in 1914, before the Genro eventually turned to Shigenobu Okuma instead. Kiyoura was the third protege of the late Genro Aritomo Yamagata to become prime minister, but unlike the previous ..read more

SNA (Tokyo) — From 1923-1924, Admiral Gonnohyoe Yamamoto made a return as prime minister. He was brought in to provide leadership in the wake of the cataclysmic Great Kanto Earthquake. Yamamoto made some progress in providing relief services, but was unable to bring political stability. Transcript When Prime Minister Tomosaburo Kato died on August 24, 1923, it was not immediately clear who should be his successor, and a week went by without a decision. Then, on September 1, just before noon, a massive earthquake hit the capital region. Within seconds, stone buildings collapsed in Tokyo, Yokoh ..read more

SNA (Tokyo) — From 1922-1923, Admiral Tomosaburo Kato led the Japanese government. While in principle it was a clear setback for democracy to have a military man and not an elected politician running the administration, Kato skillfully carried out the sensitive tasks of cutting defense budgets and ending some internationally controversial military deployments. Transcript On June 12, 1922, Tomosaburo Kato became prime minister of Japan. As a Navy admiral with no political party connection, he himself had not expected to be asked. It was a setback for Taisho Era democracy. Takashi Hara had work ..read more

SNA (Galesburg) — The Japan Communist Party (JCP) has made another step forward toward becoming the major national political party most committed to gender equity, but it is far from clear this approach will allow it to break into the mainstream. Last month, the 102-year-old party selected Tomoko Tamura to become its top executive. In recent election cycles about half of all JCP candidates have been women, a balance unseen in any of the other national political parties. Making Tamura the face of the party has extended its strategy to try to better appeal to women voters who, after all, make u ..read more

SNA (Tokyo) — From 1918-1921, Takashi Hara skillfully led Japan’s first modern government which was truly commanded by elected politicians, a major step forward for democracy. Hara’s administration, however, was very cautious and conservative. It exerted much of its effort trying to navigate international challenges unleashed by the Great War and, in particular, by US President Woodrow Wilson. Transcript On September 29, 1918, Takashi Hara became prime minister of Japan. Hara was the true political genius of the Taisho Era. He had played a long and patient game to reach the top office, and he ..read more