JAPAN’S CONSTITUTION

Greymouth Evening Star, 23 October 1945, Page 5

JAPAN’S CONSTITUTION

PRINCE KONOYE’S TASK LEGISLATIVE REFORMS • TOKIO, October 21. The former Prime Minister (Prince Konoye), said in an interview that, it Was' at General MacArthur’s personal suggestion that he had undertaken the task of liberalising the Japanese Constitution, the draft of which he expected to be ready in a month. Ihe new Constitution would have American approval before it was submitted to the Emperor and the Diet. Prince Konoye added that General MacArthur had also suggested that he should form a Liberal political movement, but he was still undecided about the matter. 4 . The Domei News Agency says that the Japanese Socialist Party has announced a programme calling for industrial and farm labour reforms, but is not insisting on a full Socialist Programme. The reforms would include rational distribution of the land, reduction of oppressive land rents, Labour participation in industrial management and legislation, collective bargaining by trade unions, minimum wages, and a 48-hour week. Japanese Communist leaders have asked the Socialist Party to join a united front against the present Japanese Government, which they described as having no ability to cope with the situation. The parties are conferring again to-morrow. The Japanese NationalFederation of Toilers, at its first mass meeting since the surrender, denounced the Communist proposal. Four thousand editorial employees petitioned the presidents of the Tokio “Asahi,” the Osaka “Asahi” and also an affiliated newspaper in Kyushu to transfer the editorial direction to the employees. They argued that the newspaper executives had responsibility for allowing Japan to enter the war because the Press was the people’s voice. The Domei News Agency has announced that it will be succeeded on November 1 by Kyodo Tsuhinsha, a co-operative organisation like the Associated Press, and the Jiji News Agency, a stock company. The Allied occupation authorities have frozen the bank accounts of Ando Moku, chief of the personnel section of the Imperial Bank of Tokio and Imoi Meijij, president of the Chosen (Korea) Bank of Seoul. In order to eliminate the possibility of black market profits being transferred, General MacArthur has prohibited United States military and civilian personnel from sending money home, except that originating from their pay and allowances.

WAR CRIMINALS TRIAL. LONDON, October 21. The trials of Pacific war criminals will begin in Tokio and Manila xyithin two or three weeks. The number of prisoners runs into thousands, and it is expected that the trials will last for at least two years. An inter-Al-lied war crimes tribunal will try leading political criminals. Others will be handed over to the countries against whose nationals their crimes were committed. The Americans have already handed over to Britain the Japanese responsible for the treatment of Indians who were sent as slaves to New Guinea and Penang. Colonel Avila Carpenter, General MacArthur’s chief legal adviser, said in Tokio, according to the New Delhi radio, that the major- war criminals to be tried include Tojo and Togo. The radio added that Tojo, who shot himself on September 11 when he was about to be arrested, and Togo, who was understood to be suffering from heart trouble when he gave himself up to the American authorities on September 15, had both recovered. Colonel Carpenter reported that 500 Japanese were in custody as war criminal suspects. Two thousand Japanese were already listed for trial and the eventual total might be 4000. The trials would be held at the largest suitable places, enabling as many Japanese as possible to attend. Not even members of the Imperial Household were immune from possible prosecution for war guilt, said Colonel Carpenter. He was replying to a question at a Press conference whether the Emperor Hirohito might be tried. Colonel Carpenter added that the Emperor had not been investigated as an individual, but if the examination o.f State papers led the trials to the Imperial Household, it would be followed. Colonel Carpenter declined to sav whether members of the present Cabinet were on the huge list of war criminals.

INDUSTRIAL MAGNATES (Recd. 11 a.m.) TOKIO, October 22. The Finance Minister, Shibusawa, announced that Zaibatsu (the family monopoly system) would be broken up. “Asahi Shimbun” commenting on the announcement says: It is merely a re-organisation in disguise and an attempt to evade war responsibility. Nobody can rest assured there is no danger of the Houses of Mitsui, Mitsuibishi and Sumotomo embarking again on war ventures at some opportune moment. PHILIPPINES’ UNREST. WASHINGTON, October 21. It is now revealed that the U.S.A, censorship has been concealing a serious situation in the Philippine Islands. It is revealed that there is a danger in the islands that Filipinos who formerly collaborated with the Japanese may gain control of the government of the country. It is reported that 75 per cent, of the members of the Philippine House of Representatives, and. all but four of the Senators in the Philippines Congress were collaborationists. These members of Parliament, control 80 per cent of the Philippine Islands’ Press. Senor Manuel Roxas. the President oi the Senate, who held a seat in the Japanese puppet government, was described as Number One collaborationist. President Osmena recently visited the United States in an attempt to secure President Truman’s assistance in opposing these collaborationist elements. It is reported that he told Mr. Truman that unless the United States strengthened his (Osmena’s) hand, through financial and economic aid in the rehabilitation of the Philippine Islands, President Roxas was certain to take over the Government in the coming May elections.

TELEGRAPH WORKERS STRIKE (Recd. 11 a.m.) MANILA, Oct. 22. To-dav 150 Filipino telegraph workers “went on strike virtually suspending civilian communications to and from the Philippines. CHINESE COMMUNISTS CHUNGKING, October 21. “In accordance with recent concessions offered to Marshal Chiang Kai-shek, the Communist forces south of the Yangtse River are moving northward,” says a statement issued by the Communists. The statement appealed to the Central Government to carry out its promise to democratise politics, nationalise the army, and accord legality to ah parties. „ „ A communique from the Communist centre of Yenan, in the northwest, says that Government forces, sometimes with the co-operation of Japanese troops, are _ attacking a liberated areas in various parts 01 China from Canton to Inner Mongolia. It adds that the Communists

I since the surrender have wrested 205 towns from the Government and Japanese forces.

CHINESE ATTACK JAPS. PEKIN, October 20. An angry crowd of Chinese surged through the “Little Tokio” section of Pekin and killed three Japanese civilians, and injured several with stones in the first open violence against Japanese since the arrival of the Chinese and American soldiers. The attacks were similar to the disturbances reported recently in Tientsin where Chinese attacked Japanese homes injuring several hundred occupants. -The Pekin policy quickly restored the peace and warned the Japanese to remain in their quarters. FIRE ON U.S?A. GUNBOAT.

(Rec. 10.30 a.m.) SHANGHAI, October 22. Unidentified attackers to-day fired on the United States gunboat Seize, between Shanghai and Nanking, but caused no casualties. The Seize returned the fire. BURMA HIGHWAY . NEW DELHI, October 21. The Stilwell Ledo Highway and the pipeline and telephone line between Calcutta and Kunming are to be abandoned on November 1. The highway is estimated to have cost over £34,000,000. The road’s peacetime prospects are negligible since it cannot compete with the reopened land and sea route from India to China via Rangoon and with Burma’s north-south system of rivers, roads and railways. Only the easternmost half of the Stilwell road —the old Burma Road from north Burma to Kunming—will be kept open. INDO-CHINA ’ SAIGON, October 21. Allied Headquarters in Saigon, has announced that the Prime Minister of- the Protectorate of Cambodia (Song Noec Teanh) has been ousted and brought to Saigon under a British- order. A British and French communique says that Teanh’s activities threatened Allied security. Another communique says that French reinforcements arrived at Saigon on Friday. Gurkhas confiscated a quantity of fire arms and arrested a number of Annamese in a house-to-house search in north Saigon.

KOREAN DISAPPOINTMENT

WASHINGTON, October 21

Mr Kilsoo Haan, Washington representative of the Sino-Korean People’s League, said that the United States State Department’s proposal for international trusteeship for Korea was “a shocking surprise and another slap in the face for 26,000,000 Koreans.” He added that the British, American, Chinese, and Filipino representatives at the San Francisco Conference had assured .him that Korea would be granted independence without trusteeship. GUADALCANAR LANDING WASHING-TON, October 21. The Commander-in-Chief of the United States Fleet (Admiral E. J. King) said that the United States planned to land on Guadacanar in September, 1942, but it was learned that the Japanese were building up their strength in preparation to move south on August 15 to attack New Caledonia, thereby cutting communications with Australia. The landing was then rushed to August 7. “The decision was the most desperate of the war, because we were compelled to move with less than we needed and sooner than could reasonably be expected,” he said. “Then came the battle of Savo Island on August 8, when we lost four cruisers. I remember that I could not believe the dispatch and. told them to., decode it again. It was, for me, the war’s blackest day. The whole future became unpredictable.” Asked whether the blame had been assessed for the loss of the cruisers, Admiral King said: “We would have held a board of inquiry promptly, but international aspects were involved, including morale and the united war effort. A British admiral commanded the force and one of the cruisers was an Australian ship. Eventually we appointed a retired British naval officer who was recalled to active service to constitute a oneman court of inquiry. He found that there were many reasons for the disaster, one of which was inexperience in war. We were all inexperienced then.”