Japan Socialist Party
Despite union support and ideological flexibility, the Japan Socialist Party ( JSP) has never emerged as an effective political force. Founded on 28 January 1906, it was the first political party to be reestablished following World War II, but found itself ideologically divided. A leftist faction opposed the peace treaty ending the war on the grounds that it imposed on Japan an oppressive regime; also, it opposed the security alliance with the United States and Japanese rearmament. The rightist faction also opposed Japanese rearmament but favored the treaty and saw some virtue in the alliance with the U.S.
The Socialists did well in the election of 1947, but failed to win a majority. They formed a coalition government, but because Japan was experiencing serious economic conditions at the time, they were unable to rule effectively.
In the decades that followed, the JSP was Japan's largest opposition party, but was never in a position to capture control of the government. Among other reasons, it did not run enough candidates in parliamentary elections. Even if all JSP candidates had won, they would not have constituted a majority in parliament. In 1994 the Socialists formed a coalition government with the Liberal Democratic Party. But this government lasted only one year.
The JSP draws its support from organized labor, especially the Japan Teachers Union. However, the party's political leverage is limited by the fact that unions in Japan are organized at the individual company level rather than across an entire industry. Thus fragmented, unions are difficult to mobilize effectively during electoral campaigns. Public sector unions like the Teachers Union are more aggressive than industrial unions but they are not significantly more influential.
Members of the JSP have embraced ideologies ranging from advocacy of revolutionary socialism on the model of communist China to promotion of liberal democracy and human rights. Those embracing the latter philosophy split off to form the Democratic Socialist Party in 1960. The 1966–1976 Cultural Revolution in China was an embarrassment to the JSP, and the party tried to distance itself from both the Chinese and Soviet models of government.
In the mid-1980s, the JSP attempted to broaden its popular appeal by moving closer to the middle of the ideological spectrum. It largely abandoned its socialist agenda and in 1991 changed its name in English to the Social Democratic Party. But its efforts to redefine itself as a centrist party were ineffective. The party did poorly in the 1996 and 2000 elections, and for all practical purposes ceased to be an electoral force.
Further Reading
Hayes, Louis D. (2001) Introduction to Japanese Politics. 3rd ed. Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe.
Hrebenar, Ronald J. (2000) Japan's New Party System. 3rd ed. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
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