61 quotes
America also has people who have come to terms with the war and those who have not. The same can be said of Japan. Those who have come to terms with the war welcomed us very warmly and have come to understand Japan very well.
Maa-Maa Koji's Discourse: The Path I Have Walked (1950)
Taiwan is part of China and Okinawa is part of Japan. Nevertheless, the fact that both are separated from their respective mainlands is due to American imperialism. We must regard American imperialism as our common enemy and fight against it.
No matter how many different arguments may arise, I think it is fine to bring things together where they need to be brought together. In a mass organization like the Socialist Party, there should be someone who can be called a unifier.
Maa-Maa Koji's Discourse: The Path I Have Walked (1950)
At ten o'clock Hitler's oratory comes through the radio. Everyone gathers at the well-side. I do not understand German, but Hitler's powerful voice and the thunderous applause that arises at every pause make me feel he is truly an orator.
The Socialist Party is a mass party, so when discussing things, it is natural that there will sometimes be left-leaning arguments and right-leaning arguments. What we must guard against is fixing left and right and turning them into factions.
Maa-Maa Koji's Discourse: The Path I Have Walked (1950)
Moreover, when we look at the territorial issue: while it may be unavoidable that territories acquired by Japan during its period of expansion are returned to their respective countries, we have lost sovereignty over South Sakhalin and the Kuril Islands.
In reality, America has abrogated the commercial treaty, and Germany, whom we regarded as a brother, has somewhat betrayed us. Japan has truly taken on an independent stance. When standing alone, it is opposed to every country.
He has been a powerful leader of the farmer's Union in Tohoku district. He is one of pioneer christian socialist worker in northern Japan. Most northern farmer still hope him back to the democratic front. I hope so too.
From the standpoint of students, we began researching democracy and socialism, but influenced by external socialist and labor movements, two currents emerged among the students: those pursuing it ideologically and those focusing on practical action.
Maa-Maa Koji's Discourse: The Path I Have Walked (1950)
We should respect each other's independence and territories, not interfere in internal affairs, not commit aggression, and stand on the basis of reciprocity and equality. On this basis, I believe that a new security system should naturally be established.
Some think of Europe's war as a heaven-sent blessing for Japan, and it is indeed a blessing, but we must prepare now for what comes next. Should we not cultivate our own autonomous and independent strength? Should not ethnic totalitarianism evolve into supra-ethnic regionalism?
As I said during the recent party self-criticism, everyone must adopt the attitude of being a pure Socialist Party member — that is, I am a Socialist Party member. Neither right nor left, just a Socialist Party member.
Maa-Maa Koji's Discourse: The Path I Have Walked (1950)
This happened just three hours after the party was founded. [...] There is the old saying of a ‘three-day shogun,’ but the Farmer-Labor Party was a three-hour shogun, and accordingly my first term as secretary-general lasted only three hours.
I heard the Imperial Rescript on the Termination of the War in a remaining apartment room in Fukagawa. I can never forget the feeling I had at that moment. [...] I felt that I must offer this extra life granted to me for the sake of Japan’s future.
If I gave a speech it was ‘Warning, Stop, Detention.’ If I was at the front of a demonstration it was ‘Detention.’ Among the social activists of that time, it seems I held the top record for number of detentions.
Finished reading Ōkawa Shūmei's Nihon Nisenroppyakunen Shi [History of Japan's 2,600 Years]. I gained much from it. Especially where he passionately advocates the need for renewal while burning with patriotic fervor—it feels as though it is permeating my own body.
If one country has its security guaranteed by another country's military forces, and if that period becomes long, independence inevitably turns into subservience, we must recognize this. The fact that Japanese courts have no jurisdiction over those residing in Japan [U.S. forces and dependents] constitutes a form of extraterritoriality, and cannot be called complete independence.
The masses believe in me. No one would try to kill me.
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What? Is one enough for you guys?
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I am a socialist. It is not necessary.
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