Tōhōkai 東方会 | |
|---|---|
| Leader | Nakano Seigō |
| Founded | 25 May 1936 |
| Dissolved | 23 March 1944 |
| Split from | Kokumin Dōmei[1] |
| Headquarters | Tokyo |
| Newspaper | Tōhō Jiron[2] Tōtairiku[3] |
| Ideology | Shōwa Statism Pro-Nazism |
| Political position | Far-right[2] |
| Religion | State Shintō |
| Colours | Black White Red |
| Party flag | |
 | |
Tōhōkai (東方会; Society of the East) was aJapanese fascistpolitical party. The party was active in Japan during the 1930s and early 1940s. Its origins lay in the right-wing political organizationKokumin Domei which was formed byAdachi Kenzō in 1933. In 1936,Nakano Seigō disagreed with Adachi on of matters of policy and formed a separate group, which he called the 'Tōhōkai'.[4]
Inspired by the writings ofultranationalist philosopherKita Ikki, Nakano advocated national reform through parliamentary means rather than through a militarycoup d'état.[citation needed] Nakano turned to theNazi movement ofAdolf Hitler and thefascist movement ofBenito Mussolini as examples of how radical right-wing political movements advocatingcorporatism could successfully take over aparliamentary democracy. The Tōhōkai used many of the trappings of the European movements it emulated, including the wearing of black shirts with armbands (bearing theJapanese character for 'East') and holding of mass rallies.[5]
The programme ofTōhōkai was not a complete copy of the Western models, however, as the group was also driven by a deep-seated admiration forSaigō Takamori and theSatsuma Rebellion and was stronglymonarchist in nature.[5] TheTōhōkai also advocated an economic policy which it called 'social nationalism', one which was actually influenced by the ideas taken from the BritishFabian Society rather than fascism.[5] The group was also strong imperialist, with Nakano suggesting that Japan should "blast a way throughSingapore to thePersian Gulf in order to link up withNazi Germany directly".[6] Tōhōkai won some popular support, and at its peak held eleven seats in theDiet of Japan in 1937.[7]
Likewise, Tōhōkai rejected the notion of the superiority of the "Yamato race" and that it could legitimize Japanese dominance over other Asians. According to Tōkōhai, Japan's mission was to liberate and unite Asia, since according to them, continental Asians were brothers and equals to the Japanese and never inferior. At the same time, on several occasions Nakano Seigo harshly criticized other Pan-Asianists for their racism and hatred against white nations. He contrasted these points of reference with those ofSun Yat-sen, who was free of racism and ready to make common cause with ostracized European nations against imperial powers.[8]
In 1939 the party actually entered into merger negotiations withShakai Taishuto, a moderate left-wing party attracted to the left-leaning elements ofTōhōkai economic policy. Ultimately however the talks broke down, both because Nakano insisted on leading any merged party and because many members ofShakai Taishuto consideredTōhōkai to be a fascist party.[9] It has subsequently been argued thatTōhōkai bears comparison to theleft-wing of the Nazi party as typified byErnst Röhm and others largely eliminated in theNight of the Long Knives.[10]
In October 1940, theTōhōkai merged into theImperial Rule Assistance Association as part ofFumimaro Konoe's effort to create aone-party state.[7] It broke away in 1941 as it felt that Konoe had not established the European-styletotalitarian party of state that they desired, although their anti-British and anti-American propaganda meant that the government did little to curtail their activities as they did with other parties.[11] As a result, theTōhōkai was allowed to field 46 candidates in the1942 general election.[11] Seven members of the party were re-elected and Nakano continued as a critic of the government, berating Konoe andHideki Tōjō for not following the path ofAdolf Hitler more closely.[12]
In October 1943, Nakano was arrested along with 39 other members of the party on charges of plotting to overthrow the Tōjō regime, and he committed suicide under mysterious circumstances the night after he was released on bail.[13] As with many similar movements based on a singlecharismatic leader, theTōhōkai largely dissolved after Nakano's death and was formally disbanded on 23 March 1944.[7] It was officially banned in 1945 by theAmerican Occupation Authorities.
After theOccupation of Japan, theTōhōkai was revived by former members, and is now a minorultranationalist group headquartered inKurume,Fukuoka Prefecture.[14] TheNational Socialist Japanese Workers and Welfare Party also claims to be a successor to theTōhōkai and sometimes uses its symbols.[15]
| Election year | Votes | Seats | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number | Percentage | |||
| 1937 | 221,455 | 2.17% | 11 / 466 |  |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
