was a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

politician and longtime member of the Imperial Diet as a member of the

Rikken Minseito was one of the main political parties in pre-war Empire of Japan. It was commonly known as the ''Minseitō''. History The ''Minseitō'' was founded on 1 June 1927, by a merger of the ''Kenseikai'' and the ''Seiyu Hontō'' political parties. I ...

party. He was born in the village of Izushi-gun in Hyōgo and in the Diet represented the rural Tajima area. In the 1890s, he studied at

Waseda University , abbreviated as , is a private university, private research university in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Founded in 1882 as the ''Tōkyō Senmon Gakkō'' by Ōkuma Shigenobu, the school was formally renamed Waseda University in 1902. The university has numerou ...

(then known as ''Tōkyō Senmon Gakkō''), where he was one the few to pass the bar examinations. He later briefly studied at

Yale Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...

, but after a lengthy decline in health, he turned from academics to politics. He served in the

National Diet The is the national legislature of Japan. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives (Japan), House of Representatives (, ''Shūgiin''), and an upper house, the House of Councillors (Japan), House of Councillors (, ...

almost continuously since his first election in 1912. He acquired a reputation as a "clean" candidate, who favored universal male suffrage and constitutionalism. In the 1930s, he developed a reputation as an opponent of the emerging

militaristic Militarism is the belief or the desire of a government or a people that a state should maintain a strong military capability and to use it aggressively to expand national interests and/or values. It may also imply the glorification of the mili ...

policies and its hypocritical slogans. However, he was a conservative who did not object on principles to the Meiji order and the military, and he opposed state intervention in economic matters unlike those with fascist or socialist tendencies. On February 2, 1940, he made a speech in which he sharply questioned the prosecution and justification of Japan's "holy war" in China, and he stressed the importance of political pragmatism over idealism and lofty notions. That caused the Diet to vote overwhelmingly for his expulsion on March 7, 1940. Many of those who opposed him were reformists and progressives like

Inejirō Asanuma was a Japanese politician and leader of the Japan Socialist Party. During World War II, Asanuma was aligned with the Imperial Rule Assistance Association and advocated for war in Asia. Asanuma later became a forceful advocate of socialism in p ...

, who would later become a prominent

Japan Socialist Party The was a socialist and progressive political party in Japan that existed from 1945 to 1996. The party was founded as the Social Democratic Party of Japan by members of several proletarian parties that existed before World War II, including ...

leader. His speech also led to the creation of the

League of Diet Members Believing the Objectives of the Holy War The was a political party coalition in the lower house of the Diet of Japan formed on March 25, 1940, with the backing of the Imperial Japanese Army as a reaction against a speech made by Saitō Takao, of the ''Rikken Minseitō'' critical of t ...

Fumimaro Konoe Prince was a Japanese politician and prime minister. During his tenure, he presided over the Japanese invasion of China in 1937 and the breakdown in relations with the United States, which ultimately culminated in Japan's entry into World W ...

, who was his main target. Saitō was easily re-elected to the Diet in 1942, one indication of his popularity among his constituents. After the

surrender of Japan The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally signed on 2 September 1945, bringing the war's hostilities to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy ...

in 1945, he was one of the politicians that participated in the Allied Occupation's efforts to democratize Japan.

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Saito, Takao
at

National Diet Library The is the national library of Japan and among the largest libraries in the world. It was established in 1948 for the purpose of assisting members of the in researching matters of public policy. The library is similar in purpose and scope to ...

, Japan * 1870 births 1949 deaths Japanese people of World War II Rikken Minseitō politicians Members of the House of Representatives (Empire of Japan) People expelled from public office Politicians from Hyōgo Prefecture {{Japan-politician-stub

See also

References

External links