 | You can helpexpand this article with text translated fromthe corresponding article in Japanese. (December 2020)Click [show] for important translation instructions.
|
Kōtoku Shūsui | |
|---|---|
 Kōtoku in 1909 | |
| Born | (1871-11-05)November 5, 1871 |
| Died | January 24, 1911(1911-01-24) (aged 39) |
| Cause of death | Execution by hanging |
| Occupation(s) | Journalist, anarchist, political agitator |
Kōtoku Denjirō (幸徳 傳次郎; November 5, 1871 – January 24, 1911), better known by thepen nameKōtoku Shūsui (Japanese:幸徳 秋水;Japanese pronunciation:[koːtokɯɕɯːsɯi]), was a Japanesesocialist andanarchist who played a leading role inintroducing anarchism to Japan in the early 20th century. Historian John Crump described him as "the most famous socialist in Japan".[1]
He was a prominent figure in radical politics inJapan, opposing theRusso-Japanese War by founding theHeimin-sha group and its associated newspaper,Heimin Shinbun. Due to disregard for state press laws, the newspaper ceased publication in January 1905, and Kōtoku served five months in prison from February to July 1905. He subsequently left for theUnited States, spending November 1905 until June 1906 largely inCalifornia, and he came into contact with other prominent anarchist figures such asPeter Kropotkin.
Upon his return, he contributed to a divide within the left-wing movement between moderatesocial democrats and the more radical advocates ofdirect action, the latter of whom he supported. The growth of the 'direct action' faction led to the banning of theJapan Socialist Party in February 1907, and is arguably the beginning of Japan's modern anarchist movement. He was one of the 12 accused who were executed for treason by the Japanese government in theHigh Treason Incident in 1911, under suspicion of involvement in a bomb plot to assassinate the JapaneseEmperor Meiji.
Kōtoku was born in 1871 to a mother who came from a lowersamurai family, and to a father who died shortly after his birth. Born inTosa Province, one of the key supporters of theMeiji Restoration, he became influenced by the growing opposition to the new government.[2] Tosa was a hotbed of resistance largely due to the discontent of samurais, whose power was declining, and Kōtoku became at a young age an ardent supporter of the pro-democracyLiberal Party.[3]
At the age of 16, his school was destroyed by a typhoon, and he went toTokyo in September 1887 to attend a private school that taught English. There he involved himself in public agitation, driven by the Liberal Party, calling for the abolition of theunequal treaties signed between Japan and Western powers, alongside freedom of speech. The government responded by barring more than 500 radicals from coming within seven miles of theTokyo Imperial Palace, effectively exiling them from the capital.[4]
As a result of this, he moved toOsaka in November 1888, where he became a 'disciple' of the older radicalNakae Chōmin. In theConfucian tradition, Kōtoku was loyal to his 'master', despite his egalitarian beliefs. They returned to Tokyo after an amnesty was issued alongside the newMeiji Constitution of 1889.[4]
In 1893, Kōtoku became the English translator for theJiyu Shinbun, the newspaper of a newly reformedLiberal Party. He left this post in 1895, but still remained under Nakae's tutelage. However, when many liberals united with pro-government supporters ofItō Hirobumi in 1900 to form the right-wingRikken Seiyūkai party, Kōtoku became disillusioned with liberalism.[4] He is also described as aradical or radical-liberal because he supported anti-imperialism and anti-establishment lines, unlike mainstream liberals who defended imperialism at the time.[5][6]
In 1898, he joined the staff of theYorozu Chōhō newspaper, wherein he published an article in 1900 condemning war in Manchuria. He published his first book in 1901, titledImperialism,Monster of the Twentieth Century, which was a monumental work in the history of Japanese leftism, criticising both Japanese and Western imperialism from the point of view of a revolutionary socialist.[7]
By now a committed socialist, he helped to found theSocial Democratic Party. Despite the party's commitment to parliamentary tactics, it was immediately banned.[8] He wrote another book in 1903,Quintessence of Socialism, acknowledging influence fromKarl Marx.[9] He also contributed articles toSekai Fujin (Women of the World), a socialist women's newspaper.[10]
In 1903,Yorozu Chōhō came out in support of war with Russia, as its editor decided to support the upcomingRusso-Japanese War.[9] In protest against this decision, in October 1903 Kōtoku was one of a number of journalists who resigned to found theHeimin-sha group,[11] alongside its associated anti-warHeimin Shinbun newspaper, which started publication in November.[9][12]
A year after the founding ofHeimin Shinbun, Kōtoku translated and published Marx'sCommunist Manifesto, for which he was fined.[13] The newspaper was soon banned, publishing its last issue in January 1905,[9] and Kōtoku was imprisoned from February to July 1905 for his involvement in the newspaper.[14]
His imprisonment only gave him further opportunities to read leftist literature, and he claimed in August 1905 that "Indeed, I had gone [to prison] as a Marxian Socialist and returned as a radical Anarchist."[13][15] He travelled to the United States in November 1905 and spent until June 1906 in the country.[16]
While in America, he spent most of his time in California, and his ideology further radicalised towardsanarcho-communism.[17] He wrote to the anarcho-communist Peter Kropotkin, who gave him permission to translate his works into Japanese in letter dated September 1906.[18][19] Kōtoku also came into contact with theIndustrial Workers of the World, ananarcho-syndicalist union, and became aware ofEmma Goldman's anarchist newspaperMother Earth.[15]
Before he left California, he founded a Social Revolutionary Party amongst Japanese-American immigrants, which quickly radicalised towards the use of terrorist tactics to bring about the anarchist revolution.[20]
During his absence, Japanese socialists formed a newJapan Socialist Party in February 1906. Kōtoku's new, more radical ideas clashed with the parliamentary tactics affirmed by the party, and he advocated for anarchist revolution through direct action rather than electoral strategy.[21] The growth of these ideas led to a split in the party between 'soft' and 'hard' factions (parliamentarians and direct actionists respectively),[15][22] and the party was banned in February 1907.[23] The growth of the pro-direct action faction is considered the beginning of Japan's modern anarchist movement.[18]
Outside of party politics once more, Kōtoku worked with others to translate and publish Kropotkin's anarcho-communist bookThe Conquest of Bread, alongside an American anarcho-syndicalist pamphletThe Social General Strike. Unions were banned due to a 1900 law, however, and much anarchist discussion was highly theoretical rather than practical.[24] Nevertheless, Kōtoku was strongly critical ofKeir Hardie when he visited Japan, decrying "Hardie's State Socialism".[15]
Despite being ideologically opposed to hierarchy, Kōtoku was seen as an 'authority' by many younger anarchists due to Japanese cultural norms, and he himself referred to Kropotkin assensei (teacher).[25]
In 1910, a handful of anarchists, including Kōtoku, were involved in a bomb plot to assassinatethe Emperor. The resultantHigh Treason Incident and trial led to the arrest of hundreds of anarchists, the conviction of 26, and the execution of 12. The trial was rigged by the prosecution, and some of those executed were innocent.[26] The trial and its fallout signalled the start of the 'winter period' (冬時代,fuyu jidai) of Japanese anarchism, in which left-wing organisations were tightly monitored and controlled, and militants and activists were tailed 24 hours a day by police.[27]
Kōtoku was executed by hanging in January 1911 for treason.[27] His final work wasChrist Obliterated (基督抹殺論,Kirisuto Massatsuron), which he composed in prison.[8] In this book, he claimed thatJesus was a mythical and unreal figure.[28][29]
Even though he had married a decade prior, he began a love affair withKanno Sugako after her arrest related to the 1908Red Flag Incident.[30][31]
In November 1908, he was diagnosed with tuberculosis, and began to believe that he did not have long to live. This helped to drive him towards supporting more extremist, violent tactics.[30]
While Kōtoku's audience declined as repression increased, his fame/notoriety first as a radical liberal, then as a socialist and pacifist, and ultimately as an anarcho-communist only grew.
