COMPLEX POLITICS

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 69, Issue 77, 11 January 1949, Page 4

COMPLEX POLITICS

Japanese People DISSOLUTION MAY NOT BE LONG (From Denis Warner— N.Z.P.A.Reuter Correspondent). TOKTO. Already confused by some of the clauses of their new Democratic Constitution the Japanese people, after less than three months of the Yoshida administration, have become lost in the complexities that have developed their national politics. First, they found it difficult to understand that a Government could take office when opposition parties held an absolute majority of about 40 seats. Secondly, they believed that Occupation demands for the speedy passage of General MacArthur’s own revision of the National Public Service Law would be followed immediately by dissolution of the Diet and a general election. But now, with the special Diet session already concluded, the National Public Service Revision Law passed and a new Diet session opened by tlife Emperor, there is still no definite indication than before that the Diet will be dissolved. Yoshida reluctantly continues in office, governing with a minority against a majority that refuses to let him call an election.

It was Yoshida’s plan to go ahead with the Diet dissolution under Article VII of the new Constitution, which proclaims that the Emperor, “with the advice and approval of the Cabinet” shall, among other things, “perform the function of dissolution on the House of Representatives. This immediately brought protest from Opposition members, who claimed that Yoshida’s “.reactionaries” were unconstitutional in attempting to use the Emperor for their own ends. Some of the more important Toyio newspapers also.took up the cry; but most prejudicial to the Yoshida case was the attitunde of General Courtney Whitney and his all-important Govr ernment section. General Whitney refused to see him after the Demo-cratic-Liberal Party leader became Prime Minister.

“Middle-of-the Road” Groups

Most observers believed that the Democratic-Liberals would score an outright win if they could force an election early enough. Prolonged office without an election would bring the same calumny heaped upon their predecessors. There is little kudos and no thanks attaching to government in highly-taxed Japan to-day. Any delay in the election, it was thought, would weigh against the Democratic-Liberal Party. It has been the consistent policy of. the Occupation to favour* middle-of-the road groups and coalitions—the two preceding Governments were moderate Conservative moderate Labour coalitions. Despite his war record, when he was 'imprisoned by the militarists for advocating peace, Yoshida, as the leader of a strongly Conservative Party, is held to be too right wing. Arrest of Suehiro.Nishio, strong man of the right wing of the Social Democratic Party, was the first blow to middle-of-the-road hopes. Former Prime Minister Ilitoshi Ashida’s alleged complicity, along with Nishio, in the Showa Denko fertiliser scandal, seems to have ended temporarily, at least, all hopes for keeping the Liberal Democrats out of office.

But tlie occupation, Japanese observers say, is keeping their firmest hand upon the Government, the National Public Service Law passed the House of Councillors four minutes before the end of the specially called emergency Diet session, and then only with solid prodding from Government section officials, who actually sat in on Party conferences and were present in the Dipt Chamber.

“Inherently Insoluble Problem”

With the principal opposition strong men now discredited, Yosliida no longer feels the same urgency l'or an election. He lost his tight over tire dissolution based on Article 111. of.the Constitution, but the. victory was hollow for the opposition. The. newspapers Aslmi and .Nippon Times- re- 1 ported earlier and Yoshida, confirmed it in his policy speech, that some three-point undertaking had been reached between the Government, section, the Governmnet and the Opposition bloc on the dissolution of the Diet. But these predictions have only added to the confusion in the minds of the Japanese people. The new Diet has been called upon to deliberate the supplementary Budget Bill, which the “Nippon Times” called in an editorial an. “inherently insoluble problem.” ‘ u On the one hand the Diet is normally obliged to provide for the 6307 yen monthly basic salary for Government employees as recommend by the new temporary National Personnel Commission, and on the other there is seemingly no way in which the Government can provide funds for more than the current >5330 yen basic salary scale. Yo'ihida himself told this correspondent that it might be possible to raise the necessary funds to meet the increase for millions of Government workers by disposing of Government property. He also has in mind some alteration of the tobacco monopoly, already a big revenue producer for the Government. But they are only “mights.” The other solution —increased taxation—does not come even within this class. As a free enterprises party, the Government wants taxation reduced. On these issues, observers predict, Diet dissolution probably will come about. *