was a

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

who served in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

in the Diet (national legislature) as a member of the Liberal Democratic Party.

Early life and career

Tsushima was born in

Tokyo Prefecture Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital and most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is one of the most populous urban areas in the world. The Greater Tokyo Area, which ...

as Yuji Shima and adopted his mother's family name at age 3, becoming Yuji Ueno. He attended the

University of Tokyo The University of Tokyo (, abbreviated as in Japanese and UTokyo in English) is a public research university in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1877 as the nation's first modern university by the merger of several pre-westernisation era ins ...

and passed the bar exam while still in college. In 1953, he joined the

Ministry of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfoli ...

. During this time he attended

Syracuse University Syracuse University (informally 'Cuse or SU) is a Private university, private research university in Syracuse, New York, United States. It was established in 1870 with roots in the Methodist Episcopal Church but has been nonsectarian since 1920 ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

as a part of the

Fulbright Program The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States cultural exchange programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people ...

. Tsushima worked in the Japanese Embassy in Paris from 1963 to 1967. While stationed in Paris, he adopted the Tsushima family name upon his marriage to Sonoko Tsushima, the daughter of writer

Osamu Dazai , known by his pen name , was a Japanese novelist and author. A number of his most popular works, such as ''The Setting Sun'' (斜陽, ''Shayō'') and '' No Longer Human'' (人間失格, ''Ningen Shikkaku''), are considered modern classics. Hi ...

(Shuji Tsushima) and niece of politician Bunji Tsushima. Leaving the ministry in 1974, he was elected to the House of Representatives in 1976, representing Aomori Prefecture. He served as the

Minister of Health A health minister is the member of a country's government typically responsible for protecting and promoting public health and providing welfare spending and other social security services. Some governments have separate ministers for mental heal ...

in 1990 and 2000. Tsushima was elected to head the LDP faction of former Prime Minister

Ryutaro Hashimoto was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan, prime minister of Japan from 1996 to 1998. Born in Okayama Prefecture, Hashimoto graduated from Keio University in 1960 and entered the National Diet in 1963. He rose through the ...

in 2005 following Hashimoto's resignation amid a 100 million yen political funds scandal. On July 19, 2009, after 33 consecutive years in office, Tsushima announced that he had no plan to run in the following election. His seat was taken over by opposition candidate Hokuto Yokoyama in the 2009 general election. Tsushima registered as an attorney in 2005 (while still in office), joining the Tokyo law firm of Tanabe & Partners, and remained a partner at the firm following his resignation. In March 2010 he was appointed a special advisor to

Shinsei Bank is a leading diversified Japanese financial institution that provides a full range of financial products and services to both institutional and individual customers. It is owned by SBI Holdings, SBI Group and headquartered in Chuo, Tokyo, Chuo, ...

Personal life and death

Tsushima was the fourth of five Diet members in his family. His son Jun Tsushima is currently a member of the House of Representatives, having won the Aomori 1st district seat previously held by his father in the 2012 general election. Tsushima attributed his family's influence to a decision by Bunji Tsushima to give his land in Aomori to farm laborers. The other family members in the Diet were

Bunji Tsushima Bunji or Bunji-ye may refer to: Places * Bunji-ye Karbasi, a village in Hormozgan Province, Iran * Bunji-ye Maski, a village in Hormozgan Province, Iran * Bunji-ye Saheli Latidan, a village in Hormozgan Province, Iran * Bunji, Pakistan, a town ...

, who served in both houses following a stint as Governor of Aomori Prefecture;

Kichirō Tazawa was a Japanese politician. He held different cabinet posts and served as defense minister from 1988 to 1989. Early life Tazawa was born in 1918. He was a native of Inakadate, Aomori Prefecture. Career Tazawa was a member of the Liberal Demo ...

, a member of the House of Representatives from 1960 to 1996 and defense minister in the cabinet of

Zenko Suzuki The Kudara no Konikishi clan (Japanese language, Japanese: 百済王氏, ''Kudara no konikishi-uji'') was a Japan, Japanese clan whose founder, Zenkō ( or ), was a son of Uija of Baekje, King Uija, the last king of Baekje (located in the southwes ...

; and Kyoichi Tsushima, a member of the House of Representatives since 2003 who served as a vice-minister in the cabinet of

Yoshihiko Noda is a Japanese politician. He is the current leader of the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan (CDP), and has been a member of the House of Representatives since 2000. From 2011 to 2012, he was the Prime Minister of Japan. Noda entered po ...

. Yūji Tsushima died on October 25, 2023, at the age of 93.

References

1930 births 2023 deaths Government ministers of Japan Ministers of health, labour and welfare of Japan University of Tokyo alumni Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) politicians Officers of the Legion of Honour Politicians from Tokyo Members of the House of Representatives (Japan) 2000–2003 Members of the House of Representatives (Japan) 2003–2005 Members of the House of Representatives (Japan) 2005–2009 Members of the House of Representatives (Japan) 1986–1990 Members of the House of Representatives (Japan) 1990–1993 Members of the House of Representatives (Japan) 1993–1996 Members of the House of Representatives (Japan) 1996–2000 {{Japan-politician-1930s-stub