Reza Fiyouzat / Press Action – 2004-06-12 08:11:21

http://www.pressaction.com/news/weblog/full_article/fiyouzat06112004/

TOKYO (June 11, 2004) — The Japanese government is fully determined to expand its role in the regional wars conducted by the United States. The rewards for such support may yet prove to be more lucrative opportunities for the expansion of Japan’s own realm. We should not underestimate the will of the Japanese right-wing establishment.

Some Japanese historians and historians of Japan may in fact find similarities between U.S. intentions in Iraq today and Japan’s intentions and methods in setting up a puppet regime in Nanjing, in 1940, a full three years after their initial invasion of China.

In parallel to their military expansions, colonial powers are always mindful of laws governing their citizens’ actions at home. The enactment in Japan of the National Mobilization Act in 1938 enabled the state takeover of key industries, while eradicating the rights of individuals and citizens’ groups. By 1940, “all political parties were dissolved and were replaced by the state-sponsored Imperial Rule Assistance Association,” (The Columbia Encyclopedia, sixth edition, 2001).

Japan’s Version of Patriot Act Stirs Fears of TyrannyReza Fiyouzat is an applied linguist and freelance writer living in Japan. Some of Fiyouzat’s writings have appeared on CounterPunch and (in English and Portuguese) on the Brazilian website Revista Espaco Academico. Fiyouzat can be reached at rfaze@gol.com.