The U.S.-led Occupation of Japan ended 50 years ago, but still casts long shadows over the country and remains hotly debated among scholars and pundits. It is indeed fortunate, therefore, that English readers can benefit from this astute and comprehensive assessment by Eiji Takemae, the dean of Japanese scholars on this era. This translation of his 1983 classic has been expanded and updated and the original four chapters have ballooned to 11.
One of the fascinating aspects of this work is its detailed description of the process of drafting and implementing Occupation reforms. Japanese conservatives have a tendency to blame a variety of contemporary social ills on what they regard as the misguided reforms that swept over Japan from 1945-52. This account challenges the view that the Allies acted unilaterally in reforming Japan, arguing that there was a substantial and sustained influence by various Japanese in setting the agenda, shaping the details of the reforms and translating them into reality on the ground. As the Allies governed indirectly through the bureaucracy and Diet, there was ample room for modifying the thrust and scope of the reforms.
Takemae argues that, "In implementing its reform agenda, GHQ relied on a combination of fiat, persuasion and Japanese initiative. . . . After the early punitive phase of the Occupation, collaboration came to characterize the reform process." In many ways Japanese played key roles in advising and influencing policies over a wide spectrum, and in doing so saved GHQ from embarrassing miscues.