TheSpecial Higher Police (特別高等警察,Tokubetsu Kōtō Keisatsu), often abbreviatedTokkō (特高,Tokkō), was, from 1911 to 1945, a Japanese policing organization, established within theHome Ministry for the purpose of carrying out civil law enforcement, control of political groups and ideologies deemed to threaten the public order of the Empire of Japan, counterintelligence, domestic criminal investigations,high policing, and public security.[1] As the civilian counterpart to the military police forces of theKenpeitai (army) and of theTokkeitai (navy), the Tokkō's functions were counter espionage and criminal investigation. The Tokubetsu Kōtō Keisatsu was also known by various nicknames such as thePeace Police (治安警察,Chian Keisatsu) and as theThought Police (思想警察,Shisō Keisatsu).[2]
TheHigh Treason Incident of 1910 was the stimulus for the establishment of the Tokkō under the aegis of theHome Ministry. With theRussian Revolution, unrest at home due to theRice Riots of 1918, increase in strikes and labor unrest from thelabor movement, andSamil Uprising in Korea, the Tokkō was greatly expanded under the administration ofHara Takashi, and subsequent prime ministers. The Tokkō was charged with suppressing "dangerous thoughts" that could endanger the state. It was primarily concerned withanarchism,communism,socialism, and the growing foreign population within Japan, but its scope gradually increased to include religious groups,pacifists, student activists, liberals, and ultrarightists.
After the passage of thePeace Preservation Law of 1925, the power of the Tokkō was expanded tremendously, and it expanded to include branches in every Japanese prefecture, major city, and overseas locations with a large Japanese population (includingShanghai,London andBerlin). In the late 1920s and 1930s, the Tokkō launched a sustained campaign to destroy theJapanese Communist Party with several waves of mass arrests of known members, sympathizers and suspected sympathizers (March 15 incident).
The Tokkō was composed of six departments (Special Police Work, Foreign Surveillance,Koreans in Japan, Labor Relations, Censorship, Arbitration). In 1927, a sub-bureau was added, the Thought Section of the Criminal Affairs Bureau, to deal with the study and suppression of subversive ideologies. The Tokkō made use of both uniformed and non-uniformed officers, along with a large network of informants. These informants were often undercover officers infiltrating suspect organizations and acting asagents provocateur, or voluntary informants fromTonarigumi neighborhood associations. Counter-espionage activities also included monitoring external telephone and radio communications inside or outside Japan and nearby areas.
By 1936, the Tokkō had arrested 59,013 people, of whom 5000 had been brought to trial; about half of those received prison sentences.Prisoners were forced to write accounts of how they had become involved with "dangerous ideologies", rewriting these essays until their interrogators were happy with the work. These works then were used to prove their criminal involvement.[clarification needed]
The Tokkō was abolished in October 1945 by theAllied Occupation authorities under theRemoval of Restrictions on Political, Civil, and Religious Liberties. This directly led to princeNaruhiko Higashikuni's resignation as prime minister.[citation needed]
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| Cabinet Intelligence Council |
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| Ministry of Foreign Affairs |
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| Ministry of Defense |
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| Ministry of Justice | |
| Japan Coast Guard |
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| Ministry of Finance |
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| Defunct agencies |
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