Japan - Socialism and status of Communist parties

Personally, I have great interest in knowing more about Japanese communism. I was wondering the state of communist parties in Japan as Japan is a blind follower of United states. The influence of US on Japan and its political structure must have wiped out the possibility of flourishing the prsopects of communism in Japan.

Being from a person from communist ruled state in India, Kerala, I was interested in Japan and its activities in a capitalist economy. My grandfather was a communist, but my father was against communism as he told us that communism ends up all individual achievements and competition in the world. As he told, in a communist ruled country, people will not put their effort to achieve the goals. Everything will be decided by the state. I have read Communist manifesto when I was doing my graduation. I was in favor of communism infact and was a great fan of Carl Marx. More than communism, Marxism attracted me for its practical approach, eventhough finding differences between both are quite difficult.

The Japanese Communist Party (JCP) advocates the abolition of capitalism and the establishment of a society based on socialism, democracy and peace, and opposition to militarism. JPC proposes to achieve these objectives by working within the framework of capitalism in order to achieve its goals, while still struggling against what it describes as imperialism and its subordinate ally, monopoly capital.

Although it is a Leninist party, the JCP does not advocate socialist revolution, it proposes a democratic revolution to achieve democratic change in politics and the economy, and the complete restoration of Japan's national sovereignty, which it sees as infringed by Japan's security alliance with the United States.

The JCP is one of the largest non-ruling communist parties in the world, with about 400,000 members belonging to 25,000 branches. The JCP has maintained its position partly because of the collapse of the old Japan Socialist Party, once the country's main opposition party but reduced to 5.5% of the vote.

Although the socialist and other left wing movements had very little practical success in the period before world war II ,they constitute an important subject of study. This study will help us to understand the origins of the left wing in Japan today. Socialistic movements have exerted a powerful influence on Japanese writers, artists, and intellectuals in general.

One reason for the poor performance of socialist movement in the prewar period was the frequent governmental suppression to which they were subjected. It is the history in Japan that the first Socialist Part, founded in 1901 was banned on the same day it declared its birth !

Such treatments by authorities soon led to some socialist leaders to despair of ever achieving their goals by parliamentary means and to embrace more radical ideologies, such as syndicalism and anarchism. While in many other parts of the world, these suppression by the establishment gave more strength and vigor to socialistic movements, Japan's socialist movements did not get into the mainstream.

Communism and socialistic movements in many parts of the world suffered severe set backs. But including my own state Kerala and the eastern states of India, West Bengal and Tripura to some extent still embrace communism and beholds memories of a good tomorrow where rich and poor will not be there in the earth.

Red salute to the comrades !

Address of Japanese Communist Party:
The Central Committee of the Japanese Communist Party
4-26-7 Sendagaya,Shibuya-ku,Tokyo 151-8586