UNIT 16 POLITIC~LREFORMS IN

16.10 Answers to Check Your Progress Exercises

16.0 OBJECTIVES

After reading this Unit you will. be able to : know about the initial pledge made by the to allow political participation by the people, understand the process by which the Baku-hm system was destroyed, be able to know how acentralised bureaucratic state was established, know about the peoples*movement, its leadership and demands related to representation in the political process, and the reactions of the , know how a w& established, and get an idea of the and how it was put into operatibn in the first five years.

16.1 INTRODUCTION -- This Unit deals with the political reforms brought about in Japan for the establishment of a modern nation-state. The period under discussion is mainly from 1868 to 1889 when the constitution was finally promulgated. Japan emerged during this period as a united nation under a centralized administration. This involved national integration and the removal of the regional loyalties which had till then played a major role. The political reforms also aimed to achieve Japan's objective of being recognized as a modern nation equal to other W~sternnations by incorporating various modern political institutions. The promise made in the issued by the Emperor in April 1868 for the a establishment of deliberative assemblies and decisions being made by public opinion indicated that public participation in the political process would 6e allowed. In this context a popular movement demanding the establishment of a National Assembly arose. These pressures on the Government from the people as well as the initiatives taken by the leaders to frame a constitution finally led to the promulgation of the in 1889. Thus Japan became the first nation in Asia to have a written Constitution. The Unit also takes into account the operative aspkt of the constitution in the initial stages. 16.2 CHARTER OATH

In pre-Meiji Japan scholars have traced the history of the. process by which decision making was widened to include a larger public opinion. The Tokugawa Shogubs sought in the last years of their rule to include a wider range of groups in the political process. This background made it possible for the Meiji government to announce, soon after the Imperial , the principles of decision-making by public opinion. The Charter Oath of Five Articles proclaimed by the Emperor in April 1868 announced to the world the new path which Japan proposed to take. The five Articles were : 1) Deliberative Assemblies shall be widely established and all state affairs decided by public opinion. 2) All classes, high and low, shall unite in carrying out the administrative affairs of the state. 3) The common people, no less than the civil and military officials shall be allowed to pursue whatever calling they choose so that public apathy may not beset the land. 4) The evil customs of the past shall be abandoned and every thing would be based on the just laws of Heaven and Earth. 5) Knowledge shall be sought throughout the world so as to invigorate the foundations of Imperial rule. The Articles as originally drafted by Yuri Kimimasa of Echizen Clan, who was influenced by the Tokugawa scholar Yokoi Shonan, were inclined towards a constitutional parliamentary government. But due to oppositi;n they were revised by the Meiji leader Kido Koin to reduce the emphasis on the common people and parliamentary government. However, this declaration was used as the basis by the. people to agitate for and demand the establishment of a National Assembly. This assembly, as perceived by the people would be their representative body through which they could determine their destinies.

16.3 POLITICAL MACHINERY

Let us try to understand the political machinery which replaced the Baku hen system.

After the imperial faction overthrew the Tokugawas, in 1868, a new political machinery was established through the proclamation of what is known as the Constitution of 1868. Under this, a new Council of State (Dajokan) was established with supreme political authority. It was based on the principle of . Further changes were made in July 1869, but the form of Government on which Meiji leaders settled upon till the cabinet system was introduced in 1885, was adopted in July 1871. In this, the Council of State was divided into the Central Board, the Right Board and the Left Board. The Central Board was the supreme organ of the Government and it was headed by the Chancellor (dajo deijin) and included deputies (dainagon). These deputies were later replaced by and Right and a number of ~ouncillors.The Left Board was created to perform legislative functions, but it acted merely as an advisory body. The Right Board consisted of Heads of Departments and their deputies. The departments of Foreign Affairs, Finance, War Public Works, the Imperial household, Education, Shinto and Justice were created at that time. The Department of Home Affairs was added in 1873. In theory, the Right Board was separated from the Central Board but because influential councillors also served as Heads of Departments, policy making and administrative duties tended to

Y merge. Sanjo Sanetomi (1837-1891) occupied the post of Chancelior and the Minister df the Right, but actual authority was exercised by the Councillors, who . were primarily men from Satsuma and Choshu. The majn leaders were Saigo Takomari. Okubo Toshimichi from Satsuma; Kido Koin,.lto Hirobumi, Inoue Kaoru, from Choshu, Okuma Shigenobu from Hizen and and Goto Shojiro from Tosa. All these leaders had played a decisive role in the overthrow of the Shogunate. 16.3.1 Abolition of Han A change in the administrative machinery alone could not strengthen the new government. The central governmeat did not control all the revenues of the nation. Less than one fourth of the total agricultural production of Japan was under the control of the centrezThe rest still constituted the revenues of the respective han (domain) which continued to retain their autonomy. Kido Koin felt that just as the Shogun had done, other Daimyos should also be compelled to return their domains to the Emperor. The leaders from Satsuma, Choshu,.Tosa and Hizen were able to. persuade their lords to take the initiative of returning their domains to the Emperor as early as in March 1869. The other Daimyos also followed suit as they feared that they would be considered disloyal to the Emperor. Those who did not do so voluntarily were forced to do so. The former Daimyos were re-appointed as hereditary han chieftains and paid one-tenth of the han income as salary. The samuari retainers of the ex-Daimyowere given a fraction of their former stipends as income.

The process of returning the han lands to the Emperor was completed by 1870. While returning the hnn lands some Daimyo like Shimazu Hisamitsu of Satsuma, had been led to believe that they would be allowed to retain autonomy as well as their army. However, the intention of the Meiji leaders was to eliminate the han government completely by replacing the han with prefectures under the direct control of the central government. This needed some persuasion, particularly in the case of Satsuma. An offer was made to Shimazu Hisamitsu to join the Government but he refused. He, however, allowed Saigo Takamori to join the central government. The Government also organized an Imperial army from the warriors provided by Satsuma. Choshu and Tosa, in order to cope with resistance.

In August 187 1 a decree was issued abolishing the han and replacing them with prefectures headed by governors nominated by the central government. The question to be asked here is that why did the Daimyos relinquish their rights so easily? Infact they secured very favourable terms. For example they could retain one-tenth of their former han income without having to incur the expenses and trouble of managing the han. Many han were beset with financial difficulties. faced internal unrest among the peasantry and their retainers were also posing a problem. Hence, it can be said that the central government bailed the han out of their difficulties. However, the promise to pay the former Daimyo and the samurai a portion of the han income was a burden on the government's earnings as one-third of revenues had to be allocated for these payments. All debts of the han had also became the government's responsibility. After the abolition of the han in 1871. there was difference of opinion among the leaders about the type of government to be established. While Saigo Takamosi wanted a system with the (former samurai) at the core of the government, Okubo and Kido tended to prefer a centralised bureaucracy. The class system of dividing the society in a hierarchical manner into Shi, no, ko, Sho (Samurai, peasants, artisan and merchants) which prevailed in the Tokugawa period was abolished. This was an important reform. which had serious repercussions ~nthe country's political processes. The Meiji government decrees permitted freedom of I occupation; common people were also allowed to adopt family names and exclusive privileges given to the samurai were removed. However. in 1872. the government classified the people into three classes, i.e. kizoku (peers), Shizoku (upper class samurai) and Heimin (common people), for the apparent purpose of genealogical identification. The Kisoku class later became the base for creating a new system of 'peers to manage the .

16.3.2 Local Government The han. numbering 261, were abolished and the country divided into 302 ken (prefectures) and 3 fu (metropolitan prefectures). In the lollowing years, there were attempts of further consolidation. Hence by 1888 the country had only 43 prefectures. Prefectural governors were appointed and controlled by the central government. Initially, in 1871. many villages were integrated and brought under the administrative districts. The administrative heads of these unit$ were appointed by the centre and, in effect, they were members of the new Dureaucratlc class. In 1878 the districts were abolished and the entire country was reorganized into towns and villages which became the basic administrative units. In 1880 the town and village assemblies were established. Members of these assemblies were elected to deal with matters prescribed by national law. Therefore, while on the one hand, by 1880 a centralized administrative system had been established, on the other hand assemblies had been set up at the village and town level. Was this the result of the Popular Rights Movement? Could these assemblies be called the precursor of the National Assembly? We shall take up these questions in the subsequent section.

Check Your Progress 1 1) Which nation was the first in Asia to have a written Constitution: a) China b) c) Thailand d) Japan. 2) Whioh of the following is the correct statement? a) The Council of State during Meiji Government was divided into two divisions namely the Central Board and State Secretariat. b) The Council of State during Meiji Government was folded into three divisions namely the Central Board, the Right Board and the Left Board. c) The Council of State during Meiji Government was broadly based on the principles of Centre-State relations. d) Tlie Council of State during Meiji Government was divided into four divisions, namely the Central Board, the Right Board, the Left Board and the State Board. 3) Describe in about ten lines how the abolition of Han took place.

16.4 POPULAR RIGHTS MOVEMENT

The movement of popular rights was a result of the discontent of Shizoku (upper samurai) who wanted to share power at the centre which was being monopolised by the Satsunla-Choshu clans. They were joined by the gono or the wealthy farmers who wanted to direct the attention of the government to the problems of the agricultural communittes. It is the Tosa faction led by Itagaki Taisuke, who had left the governmerit on the Korean question (see Unit 18 for details) which formed the nucleus of the movement. Itagaki even organized a small political party and its membership consisted of many discontented people from the rural areas. In January 1874, ltagaki, Goto Shojiso and Soejima Taneomi together with four other men submitted a memorial to the government asking for the establishment of a national assembly. They based their arguments on concepts of Western liberalism, complained of official and stated that for the good of the country free public discussion had to be permitted. They also raised the slogan of "no taxation without representation" which reflected the dissatisfaction of the agricultural community about the new taxes levied like the one on Sake (rice wine). The memorial raised a debate within Japan regarding the need for calling a national assembly and whether or not the people were prepared ror a parliamentary government. The by breaking the bonds of traditional hierarchic institutions and encouraging the inflow of new ideas, created an environment for political discussion. Educated leaders of rural communities as well as other intellectuals played a significant role in opening village schools, establishing political societies and spreading ideas about political rights. Kono Hironaka (1849- 1923), born in a prominent rural family, was one of the key leaders, Intellectuals and journalists from went on lecture tours to stir the people's interest in these issues.

The government reacted in two ways :

i) Firstly they used repressive laws. For example a press law was enacted against criticism and it called for censorship by the Ministry of Home Affairs and the imposition of heavy penalties for violation. In April 1880, the Law of Public Meetings was enacted which severely restricted political gatherings and associations. ii) A more positive step was also taken in the form of establishing assemblies in cities, towns and villages. These assemblies chose the mayors and headmen of the villages. Assembly members, however, were elected by voters with the right to choose one-third of the assembly. Another measure was that mayors were to serve without pay. The poor were thus effectively left ofit of the political processes. The prefectural assembly members were chosen from the ranks of city, topand vitlage assembly, who paid more than ten yen in national taxes. The principle of including only the rich in the voters list was not changed when the national assembly was called later.

The government tried to answer the criticism of the Popular Rights Movement by inviting the leaders Kido and Itagaki to enter the government in 1875 with of reforms to broaden the base of the government. However, no meaningful political reforms were made. Consequently Kido and Itagaki resigned. Saigo Takamori whose plan in 1873 to invade Korea had been turned down, had resigned from the government and led the disgruntled samurai who had been deprived of their privileges, in a rebellion against the government in 1877. This is known as the . The Satsuma rebellion was effectively put down by the Imperial Army. The failure of the rebellion only intensified the agitation for the establishment of a national assembly. During 1880, more than 240,000 persons submitted formal petitions in this regard.

16.5 THE SETTING UP OF A NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

Once the nation had been unifieh with the abolition of the Bakuhan system in 1872 the mission led by Iwakura Tomomi which included among its members Okubo, Ito, Inoue and Kid0 visited various Western countries to study the legal and political institutions. There was a realization that unless these institutions were remodelled along the lines of Western institutions, it would not be possible to get the revision of the unequal treaties accepted by Western nations. The mission returned convinced that a co.nstitutiona1 government was necessary to build a strong Japan as well as to have the revision of unequal treaties accepted by the Western nations. The debates were about the type of government, the time frame by which the riationar assembly should be established as well as the meaning of the term "public". Within the ruling oligarchy a general consensus emerged that the system of government by a small clique should be changed and in 1873 itself Okubo asked Ito to draft a constitution.

After the assassination of Okubo by a sympathiser of Saigo, Ito and Okuma evierged as the main figures in the task of formulating a constitution. In 1879, on the advice of Iwakura, the Emperor asked the councillors to submit their written opinions about the advisability of a constitutional government. While all the councillors submitted their memorials suggesting some form of constitutional government, insisting upon a gradual approach, Okuma suggested the immediate adoption of a parliamentary government based on the British model.*Okuma had not informed the other leaders of his dissent from their proposals and had submitted his memorial directly to the Emperor. Ito took great exception to this breaking of ranks and felt that Okuma's radiqal plan was intended to gain support from the people and consolidate his political position. The rift with Okuma widened on another Issue as well. In 1881, the government had decided to sell its holdings in the Hokkaido Colonizatibn Commission for 380,000 yen $toa private entrepreneur from Satsuma, while the government had invested 14 million yen. 1J.was alleged that the Okuma leaked *he news to the press and caused a furore. 'The protest campaign was launched by Fukuzawa Yukichi, a friend of Okuma. ~Oku,mawas therefore charged with using the support of the press and the Mitsubishi ~ntereststo overthrow the government and was expelled from the government on 12 October 1881

However, to placate public opinion, government announced at the same time its ~ntentionto formulate a constitution in 1889 and call a national assembly in 1890. The [to-Okuma conflict, in a sense, forced the government to make a commitment regarding constitutional government and announce a definite date. However, Okuma's proposal of the British model of a cabinef responsible to the parliament did not find much support and Ito emerged as the father of the Japaneses Constitution which was greatly circumscribed, and severely limited.

Ito spent one and half years during 1882-1883 in Britain, France and Germany rnaking an indepth study of different political institutions and seeking a system suited to what he saw as the tradition of Japan. Even before Ito left on his study tour, under the influence of Herman Roesler. he had decided to adopt the model of Purssian Constitution. In Germany he had th benefit of the advice of the famous German scholars Rudolf von Gneist and Lore nz Von Stein. His study abroad helped him to z~rmhimself with theoretical knowledge to be used against the critics, who preferred the British model.

On his return he established an office for the study of the constitution. At the same time he took other steps to build the institutional bases necessary to strengthen the government so that it could deal with the demands of sharing power with political parties. In 1884 he created a new system of peers on the German model for the House of Peers which would act as a check not only on the popularly elected persons from the but also to some high government officials, military and navymen3and other prominent persons. Ito himseIf became a Count as did Yamagata Asitomo. In 1888, a Privy Council was created for examining the constitution but it continued even after this task was completed to become a strong hold of the oligarchy. Two posts independent of the cabinet viz. the Minister of Imperial Household and the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal to be filled only by members of oligarchy, were created to insulate the Imperial institutien from the influence of politicaI parties in case they were able to form the government. The holdings of the Imperial family were enlarged. Their real property holdings increased by nearly 6000 times between 1881 and 1890. I%y1887 their holdings in stocks and bonds amounted to 8 million yen. Therefore a substantial revenue source had been created which could be tapped by the government for carrying out its plans, even if the future parliament objected-to them. Such a source would also not come under the purview of the Diet.

'The Dajokan was replaced by a Cabinet system in 1885 with ten ministers including I he Prime Minister who was responsible to the Emperor. A new balance was maintained between Satsuma and Choshu with four ministers from each. Therefore, even under the new system the dominance of Satsuma and Choshu continued. The l~opesof the leaders of Popular Rights Movement to break this clique under the new system could not materialise. A civil service system was introduced by which all bureaucrats, with the exception of a few, were to be recruited through examinations only. Thu's the possibility of political parties introducing their nominees to the higher t:chelons of bureaucracy, in case they take over power, was eliminated. The 1,ureaucracy could develop as a bulwark for the oligarchy. On account of the examination system, bureaucrats generally came through the route of government run middle and high schools, as well as the prestigious Tokyo University. This along with the traditional fear of government officials as well as their pride of belonging to the Imperial service not only made them a new elitist class but also encouraged their "contempt of the people". Moreover, the higher bureaucracy was eken privileged under law and had income from certain laws. Ito had thus provided enough safeguards for the citadel of the government even before the principle of decisions ~jeingmade through public discussion was ~ntroducedthrough the new constitution. ~cbclhReforms and Check Your Progress 2 Revolution 1) Mark the correct statement. a) The Press Law enacted in 1875, encouraged political comments from all walks of life. b) The Press Law enacted in 1875 upheld the truth of the government documents during the Meiji Period. c) The Press Law enacted in 1875 imposed heavy penalties for disclosing the government documents on officers. d) The Press law enacted in 1875 restricted political criticism and also called for censorship by the Ministry of Home Affairs. 2) Mark the correct statement : a) The Satsuma rebellion was led against the feudal landlords. b) The Satsuma rebellion was plotted against a community of peasants. c) The Satsuma rebellion was carried out against the government. 3) Discuss in about ten lines why Okuma's proposal of the British Model for parliamentary government failed.

16.6 THE CONSTITUTION

In the summer of 1887, Ito and his three assistants , Kaneko Kantaro and Ito Miyoji prepared the final draft of the Constitution which was checked by Roesler and submitted to the Privy Council. The document was deliberated for six months in the Privy Council headed by Ito. Ito held that the "spirit behind the constitution is to limit the authority of the ruler and protect the subject's rights". At the same time, he held that the constitution was drafted to strengthen the authority of the ruler. Hence, it can be said that "the Meiji Constitution was essentially an attempt to unite two concepts which were irreconcilable, Imperial absolutism and popular government ". 16.6.1 Emperor The task'before Ito and others was how to place the Emperor, who had his roots in Japan's historical tradition, within a constitutional system. They further felt that the Emperor's position in the Constitution had to be so defined that he should not only have supreme political power but also be invested with a religious role by which he would be the focus of spiritualdd moral values of the people.

At the same time, there was agreement that the powers of the Emperor should be derived from the Constitution and he should not have unlimited powers. Therefore. even while Article 3 of the Constitution stated that "th6'Emperor is sacred and inviolable;', 4rticle 4 of the Constitution stated that the "Emperor being the Head o! the Empire, t;\e rights of sovereignty are vested in him and he exercises thern in accordance wiih the provisions of the Constitution". The Constitution was promuIgated on 11 February 1889 as a gift from the Emperor to thc people. I I February was the Empire day, the day when the first mythological Emperor was said to have ascended the throne. The powers of the Emperor included the foll13wing: I) Supreme command over the armed forces. 2) Power to declare war, make ~eace'andconclude treaties. 3) Power to make appointments of officials and broad authority. Rditicrl ~eliiinrb ~.p.n 4) POW& to convoke the Imperial Diet, open, close, prorogue and dissolve the House of representatives. 5) While the Diet passed the legislation, the Emperor had a veto power and could also issue ordinances. 6) All government officials arid Cabinet Ministers were responsible to the Emperor, not the Diet.

The succession to the throne according to the provisions of the Imperial House Law would develop upon male descendants of the Imperial House. Amendments to the Imperial House Law would be decided by the Emperor with the advice of the lmperial Family Council and that of the Privy Council.

In the following Sub-sections we shall discuss the mechanisms introduced in the Constitution to incorporate the principle of participation of the people in the political process.

16.6.2.The Diet The Diet consisted of two Houses, the House of Peers and the House of Representatives. The House of Peers would be filled by members of the Imperial family. peers and individuals appointed by the Emperor. It was the House of Representatives consisting of three hundred members which was to be elected by the people on the basis of limited franchise. Along with the Constitution the electoral laws of members of the House of Representative were also promulgated. Voting rights were limited to men and those who had considerable property (on the average, agricultural property above 2-3 hectares)and who were above 25 years of age. Thus the number of those who had voting rights was 450,000 men out of a population of 40 million. The , which had the people's representatives, had only limited legislative powers since the Emperor and the House of Peers could veto its legislation. However, t.he Diet members had the right to introduce bills. The Lower House could not introduce any amendment to the Constitution, only the Emperor had this prerogative. The Diet had no authority over government officials and also had limited control over the budget. Certain items in the budget could not be changed and if the Diet failed to pass it, the government was authorised to operate on the basis of the previous year's budget. However, Diet's approval was necessary for tax bills. This is where the opposition in the Diet could exercise a certain degree of control over the executive.

lnspite of its limited powers, the government could not conduct its operations without the co-ogeration of the Diet. However, the Diet could not overthrow a Cabinet by a no confider~ceresolution as the Cabinet was not responsible to the Diet. Both Houses were however given the right to appeal to the Emperor directly and also receive petitions from the people.

The duration of the Diet session was limited to three months generally but could be prolonged by Imperial order. Extraordinary sessions wer-c also to be determined by Imperial order. The deliberations of both Houses we're to be held in public. The House of Representative wassubject to dissolution at the will of the Prime Minister. While the House of Peers could only be prorogued. the members of the I,ower House had to be newly elected and the House convoked within five months of dissolution.

1 16.6.3 The Executive The Constitution did not specifically lay down the qualifications of persons whoc~)uld become Ministers. There was no collective responsibility of the Cabinet and c;rch individual minister was responsible to the Emperor. Thc Privy Council was also given the right to deliberate on important matters of the State and advise thc.Emperor. 'l'he Privy Council as well as the informal group of genro (elder statesmen), which was not a body constituted through the Constitution. hnwevcr. exercised authority in the formatior! af cabinets, as the Emperor gave approval to the advice giwn by thcm. I~hc genro !'nr many years was irrairily constit~~tedby rncrnbcrs 01' !;;it\unla-C'llo\l\tr group. The promulgation of the Constit11tion.therefore. could not hrcak thc authorit! 01 rhc Satsurna-Choshu clique. I&&~&U&ROCO~IISM~ 16.6.4 Military Revowon The military were directly responsible to r..; kimperor and the Constitution had no provision subordinating the military to civilian control. The military through the issue of an Imperial ordinance in 1900, which stipulated that only active Generals and Lieutenant-Generals, as well as the Admirals and Vice Admirals, could hold the poCtc of War and Navy Minister respectively, strengthened their power to bring down cabinets whose policies they disapproved by resigning their posts and refusing tb make new nominations. In fact this was extensively done by the military and at a later +datecontributed to the growth of (Se5 Unit 23). 16.6.5 The legal system that emerged uriaer tne constitution is defined as "rule-by-law rather than rule-of-law". A hierarchy of courts were established like the summary policy courts, district courts, local courts and courts of appeal. The court of cessation heard appeals on points of law from inferior courts.,Trials were public but when it was considered prejudicial to law and order, a public trial could be susp~nded.A separate court system (Court of Administrative Litigatio-n) was set up to deal with cases involving administrative authorities. This meant that administrative abuses could not .be brought under the scrutiny of law.

The Constitution guaranteed the people certain rights and liberties, but these were restricted within the "limits of law". Official abuses could not, therefore be challenged i'n regular courts of law. In reality, Japanese subjects were only given limited rights and freedom.

16.7 WORKING OF THE CONSTITUTION

The Meiji Constitutional system gave the Emperor many prerogatives. But by convention-he could not exercise them through his own will. He had to rely on the advice and consent of the Minister of State and the Imperial Diet. The various state institutions like the Cabinet, the Diet, the Military, Privy Council etc. existed more or less independently. These institutions were integrated through the Emperor, who could not exercise his rights on the basis of his individual will. In other words, in the interests of the smooth operation of the national government, mutual co-operation and harmony between the various organs was necessary. During the Meiji period, the genro (Elder Statesmen) collectively perfo; med the functions of the Emperor on his behalf. Since 1910, however, with the decline of the genro the shortcomings of the diffusion of power were revealed. Later there were conflicts between the various power centres. If power was diffused, responsibility was also defused and with the Emperor also not being held directly responsible, the system led to a sense of "irresponsibility".

The Popular Rights groups showed a favourable attitude towards the Veiii constitution as it had not ru~kdout party cabinets.

Public discussio~sin theDiet enabled members to inform the people about the various policies and administrative actions of the government. Although the Diet could not overthrow the government, it could mar the image of the Ministers in dhe public eye and also intimidate the government by refusing co-operation. Hence tt@ Diet, which was initially considered to be an unavoidable nuisance by the oligarch\, assumed greater importance and led to Ito Hirobumi himself establishing a politicdl party in 1900. The right of presenting memorials directly to the Emperor was exercised by the Diet members in 1892 for censuring the cabinet when they found that the ministers did not heed to their views. The Emperor, only admonished both the cabinet and the Diet members to compose their differences. In December 1893, the members sent a resolution to the Emperor asking for the dismissal of Premier lto. The Privy Council, answering for the Emperor issued a statement: "As for the resignation of my Chief Minister, I will not permit outside interference." During the first five years of constitutional government there were four separate cabinets and three general elections. The frequent dissolution of the Lower8House,arSd the violence during general elections indicated the intensiry of the struggle for the control of Diet as well as the way in which the Diet menibers were out-manoeuvred and rendered ineffective. The parties in the Diet became determined that if they could not control the government, they would obstruct the government wherever possible. It was the Sino-Japanese War in 1894 which closed the ranks between the oligarchs and the Diet members. The Constitution referred to the people as subjects and' placed more emphasis on theil duties than on their rights. The property qualification for voters made members I representative of elite classes only and they in turn passed Pezlce Preservati,on Laws, which further limited the people's freedom.

The Constitution makers of Japan did not really wish to introduce in Japan. Hence, it cannot be called "the failure of the first attempt" as stated by Robert I A. Scalapino. They wanted a strong unified government'bhich would achieve the 1 goals of building a "rich country and a strong army" with limited participation by the public. The limited franchise opened up the movement for extention of suffrage which j finally culminated in the grant of Adqlt Male Suffrage in 1925. Check Your Progress 3 I) Mark the right answer: a) The Meiji Constitution was essentially an attempt to devalue the power of the ruler. b) The Meiji Constitution was mainly an attempt to improve the status of the ruler in the society. c) The Meiji Constitution was primarily an effort to limit the authority of the ruler at one time and to strengthen the authority of the ruler at other level. d) The Meiji Constitution was an effort. to limit the power and authority of the ruler. 2) Mark the right answer: a) The Japanese Diet consisted of two Houses, the House of Peers and the House of Representatives. b) I h~ Piet consisted of three Houses, the Senate, the House of Representatives and Hou ,, of Commons. c) The Diet con\~stedof unicameral . d) The Diet consisted of two Houses, the House of Nobles and the House of Peers. 3) Mark the right answer : a) The legal system that emerged under the Constitution is defined as "rule by law". b) The-legal system that emerged under the Constitution is defiried as "rule of law". c) The legal system that emerged under the Constitution is defined as "rule against law". d) The legal system that emerged under the Constitution is defined as "rule with law". 4) Mention in about five lines the powers of the Emperor.

16.8 LET US SUM UP

The abolition of the han brought about a united nation state under a centralized administration. While this was brought about with'limited and controlled violence, the attempts by the Satsuma-Choshu clans to monopolise the power at the centre and dictate policies as well as the sense of deprivation caused by the removal of the privileges ofthe samurai led to civil war and disturbances. These were effectively put down by !he newly trained Imperial Army by 1877. ReWu-.Bdaurl The Popular Rights Movement headed by leaders, who had left the government, Revawbn demanded people's representation in the political processes. While the oligarch's had taken initiatives to frame a Constitution, the pressure of the popular movement hastened the process. The Constitution was drafted in secret by selected leaders headed by Ito Hirobumi. They tried to incorporate both the concepts of "Imperial absolutism and popular Government". The purpose of the Meiji leaders was to establish a political system which could effectively contribute to building "a rich country and strong armyn. Their objective was not to establish a government reflecting the will of the people which would aim at guaranteeing the rights and freedom of the people. However, with the promulgation of a Constitution which ensured only limited participation, they opened up hopes for a fuller participation in the future. The Constitution was also considered as a step towards obtaining recognition and achieving an equal status for Japan with the Western powers.

16.9 KEY WORDS

Convoke : Summon.

' Prefecture : District under government. Geneologicnl : Tracing family descent. Oligarchy : Government of a state governed by a small group of persons. Prerogative : Right or privilege. Prorogued : To bring to an end a session of the Parliament without dissolving it.

16.10 ANSWERS TO CHECK YOUR PROGRESS EXERCISES

Check Your Progress 1 1) d 2) c 3) The Process of surrendering all the lands of hnn was completed by :6 iU. They had fear in mind that if they do not give back their lands to the bmperor, then they will be considered as disloyal to the Emperor. Howevzr, the main purpose of the Meiji governance was to eliminate the hnn by replacing them with prefectures under the direct control of the Central Government. See Sub-sec. 16.3.1.

Check Your Progress 2 1) d 2) 3) Okuma did not make other leaders aware of his dissent from their proposals and submitted his memorandum to the Empcror. Ito took a serious note of it. That is how the rift started. Base your answer on Sec. i6.5.

check Your Progress 3 1) c 2) a 3 a 4) Base your answer on Sub-sec. 16.6.1.

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