was a Japanese academic, writer, and professor

emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

at the University of Tokyo. Sakamoto, a leading proponent of

pacifism Pacifism is the opposition or resistance to war, militarism (including conscription and mandatory military service) or violence. Pacifists generally reject theories of Just War. The word ''pacifism'' was coined by the French peace campaign ...

during Japan's post-war period, has been credited as a pioneer of international political studies in the country. In 1966, Sakamoto won the Yoshino Sakuzo Prize for his opinion piece, "Proposals for Japanese diplomacy," which called for the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and the People's Republic of China. Sakamoto died at a hospital in Tokyo on October 2, 2014, at the age of 87.

References

1927 births 2014 deaths Japanese pacifists Japanese political writers Academic staff of the University of Tokyo {{Japan-bio-stub