From 1932-1934, Admiral Makoto Saito served as prime minister, ending political party rule but nevertheless trying to steer a relatively moderate path. In foreign policy, however, his administration continued to antagonize the West, including through Japan’s withdrawal from the League of Nations.
From 1931-1932, veteran politician Tsuyoshi Inukai served as prime minister, attempting to manage the multifaceted international crisis. While he made significant progress in coping with the Great Depression, the military slipped entirely out of control. A group of young officers effectively ended this period in Japanese democracy with direct political violence.
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 also 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.
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.
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.
From 1921-1922, finance specialist Korekiyo Takahashi served as prime minister of Japan. His brief tenure, however, was mainly notable as a period in which the nation was adrift at its senior levels; those in authority or who had commanded policy in earlier years had disappeared through death and illness.
From 1891-1892, the financial specialist among the Meiji Genro, Masayoshi Matsukata, served as prime minister of Japan. After weathering a potential crisis with Russia, he called a general election and unleashed violence against the elected representatives of the people.
Since California first legalized medical cannabis in 1996, and Colorado and Washington followed with adult-use cannabis legalization in 2012, there has been an increasing global movement towards medical legalization, relaxing cannabis laws in general, and in some cases full legalization of adult-use cannabis. Even Japan may now be taking notice.
The Moritomo Gakuen school affair was the first of the major scandals that shook the government of Shinzo Abe beginning in February 2017. This a working timeline which the Shingetsu News Agency intends to fill out and update in the weeks and months ahead.
A roundup of the most significant news stories from Japan reported in the first half of September 2020.
