CAPACIDAD DEL SISTEMA CON CUATRO USUARIOS CON UN

Before World War II Japan had been the most indus- trialized of the Asian nations. Afterwards, its economy was badly damaged. Japan, however, made a surpris- ingly rapid recovery.

Economic development. Several SCAP policies helped Japan recover after the war. One important program was land reform. For the first time, many small farmers were able to own the land they worked. New farm machinery and improved seeds helped them grow and harvest more. Farm output increased very quickly.

Another SCAP program broke up some of the

zaibatsu. These were huge industrial firms con- trolled by powerful families. They were so big they prevented free trade. Some of the zaibatsu, such as Mitsubishi and Mitsui, survived the breakup. None, however, had the power they had before the war.

In the 1960s Japan changed its economic focus and started to take advantage of its highly skilled work force. It began to produce advanced technology for the world market. With government support, the new approach was very successful. By the 1980s Japan had become Asia’s leading economic power.

In the 1990s the pace of Japan’s economic growth slowed. Some companies had grown too fast and had financial problems. Also, there was more competition from other countries. The government tried to revive the economy, but it had only limited success.

Social changes. The economic growth after World War II brought Japan a much higher standard of living. Most families had lived modestly before the war. Now they were able to buy modern household appliances and new automobiles. Also, more women began to join the workforce. This caused a major shift in Japanese society. Women won greater legal, political, and social freedom. At the same time, the impor- tance of the family began to decline. It was no longer the center of all Japanese life. The higher standard of living did not always mean a better quality of life. The Japanese worked longer hours than people in the West, and the cost of living was much higher. Both the number of factories and the number of people grew. Land to build on became very scarce. From the 1960s onward, prices for land and housing soared. Factories created another problem—pollution. Many Japanese called on their government to pay more attention to quality of life and less to economic growth. In 1974 a young political party member told an American reporter:

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READING CHECK:Finding the Main IdeaWhat effect did economic growth have on Japanese society?

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Japanese women in the elec- tronics industry contributed to their country’s economic revival after World War II.

Identifying Bias How did the young person’s attitude toward the quality of life in Japan affect his comments?

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Foreign Relations and Political Life

The “MacArthur Constitution” had limited Japanese armed forces and military production. In addition, the Japanese had signed a treaty agreeing to renounce war as a political tool. Within a few years, however, the Cold War between the United States and the Soviet Union led to a reversal in U.S. policy toward Japan. The communist victory in China and the stalemate in North Korea had changed the balance of power in Asia. The United States viewed these communist states as a threat. The U.S. government felt that Japan should be able to defend itself in case of war and urged Japan to increase its armed forces.

The Japanese did not want a return of the militaristic governments of prewar days. They had no wish to rearm. They spent their money to build peacetime indus- tries and to increase exports. Raising the standard of living was more important than raising an army. In spite of pressure from the West, Japan resisted increased military spending. Finally in 1997 the United States and Japan reached an agreement. In case of a conflict near Japan, Japan would provide the United States with supplies and assistance, but not armed forces.

A more independent stance. After World War II Japan and the United States kept friendly ties. At times, there was stress between the two countries. For example, the Japanese resented the U.S. pressure to build up their armed forces. Many Japanese also disliked having American troops stationed in Japan. The U.S. forces on the island of Okinawa had been a sore point since the 1960s. Toward the end of 2000, the United States finally began to reduce the number of troops stationed there.

During the 1980s Japan began to follow its own course in world affairs and make decisions apart from the United States. Japanese leaders wanted the country to become the economic and political leader in Asia. Part of their plan was to help developing countries by giving them large amounts

of money and technical aid. By the end of the 1980s, Japan was giving more aid than any other country in the world.

In the early 1990s Japan began to rethink its relations with the nations of the former Soviet Union. In 1996 the leaders of Japan and Russia met for talks. Even after the meetings, however, relations between the two countries were strained. Japan and Russia had an ongoing dispute over the Kuril Islands. The Soviet Union had occupied the islands after World War II, and Russia still claimed them. Japan insisted that four small islands in the southern Kuril chain belonged to Japan because they were part of the Japanese- controlled island of Hokkaido. The Rus- sians insisted the islands were part of the Kurils and thus fell under their control. The Japanese were not willing to give Rus- sia any aid until the problem was solved.

Toshiki Kaifu and Mikhail Gorbachev signed a joint declaration in April 1991.

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Politics in Japan. After World War II a large number of political parties were active in Japan. The most powerful was the Liberal-Democratic Party (LDP), which controlled the government from the 1950s until the 1990s. The Socialists and others strongly disagreed with LDP policy and voiced their dislike of Japan’s defense agreement with the United States. They also were against having American armed forces stationed in Japan. In 1989 Japan faced a government crisis when a financial scandal rocked the LDP. It involved many top LDP members. A few months after the scandal broke, Toshiki Kaifu became prime minister. People trusted him even though he was a member of the LDP. By 1991, however, he had been forced out of office. In the 1993 elections, the LDP lost its majority in the Diet, ending the party’s almost 40-year rule. Political tur- moil continued, however.

In 1998 Keizo Obuchi, a member of the LDP, was chosen to be prime minister. Obuchi focused on ways to revive the economy and his programs had some success. After Obuchi died in early 2000, Yoshiro Mori became prime minister. When Mori resigned a year later, Junichiro Koizumi was elected prime minister. Koizumi prom- ised to thoroughly reform the government and bring an end to political corruption. Although he has had only limited success in his efforts, he was re-elected in 2003.

READING CHECK: Identifying Cause and Effect How did the Liberal-Democratic Party’s policies affect Japanese relations with the United States?

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SECTION 3REVIEW

SECTION 3REVIEW

1. Defineand explain the significance: zaibatsu

2. Identifyand explain the significance: SCAP “MacArthur Constitution” Liberal-Democratic Party

3. CategorizingCopy the chart below. Use it to organize the changes that occurred in Japan after World War II.

4.

a. What were the characteristics of the postwar Japanese government?

b. How did the life of an average Japanese person change after World War II?

c. What have been the main causes of tension between Japan and the United States in the postwar years?

5.

Making PredictionsDescribe what the results might have been if the Allied Powers had not helped Japan after World War II.

Consider:

• the destruction in Japan after the war • land ownership and the control of industry • the social structure of Japan

keyword: SP3 HP32

Changes in Japan after WWII Economics Society Foreign

Relations

Japan’s national legislature, the Diet, meets in this impressive building in Tokyo.

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ASIA SINCE 1945

4

4

What were the causes and effects of dictatorships in the Philippines and Indonesia?

How did the Vietnam War affect Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia?

What problems did the nations of Southeast Asia face as they struggled to create stable governments?

domino theory

Ferdinand Marcos Corazon Aquino Aung San Suu Kyi Ho Chi Minh Geneva Accord Tet Offensive Paris Peace Accords Ho Chi Minh Trail Khmer Rouge Pol Pot

Independence