Chapter 769: Rays of the Rising Sun
Many believed that the Axis Central Powers racism was unique not only to other European people, but even more so towards Africa, Asia and parts of America were they wished to hold, or establish new colonies and dominate them as superior cultures and races. Sure the Allied nations did their same with colonial forces like Britain and France, or their own colored troops and citizens like America. However the Japanese and Co-Prosperity Sphere were not only driven by the ideas of anti- (American and European) colonialism anti-(American and European) imperialism and their ideology and believes of Coprospism, but by racism as well. Therefore they had established the Pan-pacific Asian racial manifest idea highlighted in the secret 1942/1943 document “An Investigation of Global Policy with the Yamato Race as Nucleus” (大和民族を中核とする世界政策の検討, Yamato Minzoku wo Chūkaku to suru Sekai Seisaku no Kentō) supported by Prince and former Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe, as well as Minister of Foreign Affairs Yōsuke Matsuoka and Foreign Minister Shigenori Tōgō who argued that Asians (not including the caucasis Indo-Arians in North India) were the true master race and that all native people of the Americas and the Pacific (including Oceania, Australia and New Zealand) were descendants of Asians and therefore not only brothers and cousins of all Asians, therefore including these lands in their future plans for the Co-Prosperity Sphere and the idea of Hakkō ichiu. The document stated that Japan, as the originators and strongest military power within the region, the only Asian nation that had managed to modernize and industrialist like the Europeans had, would naturally take the superior position within the Co-Prosperity Sphere, with the other nations under Japan's umbrella of protection. An Investigation of Global Policy with the Yamato Race as Nucleus was a secret Japanese government report created by the Ministry of Health and Welfare's Population Problems Research Center and completed on July 1, 1943. The document, comprising six volumes totaling 5,374 pages, deals with race theory in general, and the rationale behind policies adopted by wartime Japan towards other races, while also providing a vision of the Asia-Pacific region under Japanese control.
The document was written in an academic style, surveying Western philosophy on race from the writings of Plato and Aristotle to modern German social scientists, such as Karl Haushofer. A connection between racism, nationalism and imperialism was also claimed, with the conclusion, drawing by citing both British and German sources, that overseas expansionism was essential not only for military and economic security, but for preserving racial consciousness. Concerns pertaining to the cultural assimilation of second and third generation immigrants into foreign cultures were also mentioned. The authors rationalized Japanese colonization of most of the Eastern Hemisphere including New Zealand, Australia and the western American coasts, with projected populations by the 1950s, as "securing the living space of the Yamato race". In the same document China and other Asian nations, on their own, were regarded as too weak and lacking in unity to be treated as fully equal partners, and this in any case would also not have been in Japan's self-interest. This and the War is Won (made for the Japanese army and navy) presented colonialism as an oppressive group of colonists living in luxury by burdening Asians. Since racial ties of blood connected other Asians (or their descendants in America and Oceania) to the Japanese, and Asians had been weakened by colonialism, it was Japan's self-appointed role to "make men of them again" and liberate them from their Western oppressors. From the Japanese point of view, one common principal reason stood behind both forming the Co-Prosperity Sphere and initiating war with the Allies: Chinese markets and population as with both Japan would be self-sufficient and dominate the global market with Chinese resources and cheep labor combined with their industrial abilities and expertise. Japan wanted their "paramount relations" in regard to Chinese markets acknowledged by the U.S. government. The U.S., recognizing the abundance of potential wealth in these markets, refused to let the Japanese have an advantage in selling to China. In an attempt to give Japan a formal advantage over the Chinese (and later Asian) markets, the Japanese Imperial regime first invaded China and later launched the Co-Prosperity Sphere. According to Foreign Minister Shigenori Tōgō (in office 1941–1942 and 1945), should Japan be successful in creating this sphere, it would emerge as the leader of Eastern Asia, as well as later the world and the Co-Prosperity Sphere would be synonymous with the Japanese Empire.
Yamato-damashii (大和魂, "Japanese spirit") or Yamato-gokoro (大和心, "Japanese heart/mind") is a Japanese language term for the cultural values and characteristics of the Japanese people. The phrase was coined in the Heian period to describe the indigenous Japanese 'spirit' or cultural values as opposed to cultural values of foreign nations such as those identified through contact with Tang dynasty China. Later, a qualitative contrast between Japanese and Chinese spirit was elicited from the term. Edo period writers and samurai used it to augment and support the Bushido concept of honor and valor. Japanese nationalists propagandized Yamato-damashii "the brave, daring, and indomitable spirit of Japanese people", as one of the key Japanese military-political doctrines in the Shōwa period. English translations of Yamato-damashii include the "Japanese spirit", "Japanese soul", "Yamato spirit", and "The Soul of Old Japan" a idea and ideal also deeply connected to State Shinto and Buddhism as well. Then there was alos the Shinmin no michi (臣民の道, "Way of Subjects") was an ideological manifesto issued by the Ministry of Education of Japan during the Second Great War aimed at Japan's domestic audience to explain in clear terms what was expected of them "as a people, nation and race". The Shinmin no michi also argued that the Allied powers had bent on world domination for centuries, and had been quite successful as evidenced by the fact that only a few thousand Europeans now ruled over 450 million Asians. The western values system, based on greed and self-indulgence, was seen as to blame for countless bloody wars of aggression, and for the current world economic crisis. America was singled out for special criticism, with mention made of black slavery and the mistreatment of minorities and immigrants. Passages in the manifesto claimed that: "the entry of Western countries in all parts of whole world, including the Far East, has given them international domination, and also led them to believe that they themselves possess the right to commit injurious acts against others". It also spoke of a “holy” war for the future and liberation of China and Asia: "Viewed from the standpoint of world history, the China Affair is a step toward the construction of a world of moral principles by Japan. The building up of a new order for securing lasting peace of the world will be attained by the disposal of the China Affair as a stepping stone. (...) The China Affair is a bold task for Japan to propagate the ideals of the Empire founding Coprospism throughout East Asia and the world over (...) Japan is the fountain source of the Yamato race, Manchukuo its reservoir, and East Asia is its paddy field."
Additionally the Shinmin no michi (Way of Subjects) was supplemented in 1942 by the Ie no michi (家の道 or formally, 家の道:文部省戦時家庭教育指導要項解説 Ie no michi: Monbushō senji katei kyōiku shidō yōkō kaisetsu), which elaborated on sections of the Kokutai no hongi (国体の本義 "Cardinal Principles of the National Entity") pertaining to traditional hierarchical familial relationships. Family harmony is maintained by having each member fulfill his/her proper function in the family structure, and likewise this principle applies also to the community as a whole, as well as to the State. Because Japan succeeded in stimulating anti-Westernism in parts of Asia and build up own nation states there, the sphere never materialized into a unified Asia. In other words, the Co-Prosperity Sphere operated not for betterment of all the Asian countries, but also much for Japan's own interests to lead and dominate them towards said goal, thus the Japanese managed to gather massive support in other Asian countries. Nationalist movements did appear in these Asian countries during this period and these nationalists did, to a major extent, cooperate with the Japanese, even if not all of them did so. Over the course of the Second Great War the Japanese government and these nationalist leaders developed a real unity of interests between the two parties and a overwhelming despair on the part of the Asians of the possibility of a Japan's defeat, meaning that many from Burma over China (Manchuria, Yankoku, Taikoku) over Mengjiang and Papua/ Nuigui. The fact that Japan managed to understand the goals and interests of the other countries involved in the Co-Prosperity Sphere and direct them into their own interest, led to a strong association of countries bound to Japan in theory and in spirit. Dr. Ba Maw of Burma therefore argues that Japan had engineered a their victory themselves when they had acted in accord with the declared aims of "Asia for the Asiatics". He argues that because Japan had proclaimed this maxim at the beginning of the war, and that the Japanese had actually acted on that idea they had won the war in Asia and the Pacific. Because of this pan-Asian and Coprospist ideological core, no military defeat could then have robbed Japan of the trust and gratitude of half of Asia or more, and that would have mattered a great deal in finding for her a new, great, and abiding place in a postwar world in which Asia was coming into her own. A trust and gratitude that would help the Japanese on the long run after the Second Great War. And while the projected extension of the Co-Prosperity Sphere was extremely ambitious, the Japanese goal during the "Greater Asian-Pacific War" was not to acquire all the territory designated in the plan at once, but to prepare for a future decisive war some 20 years later after the Second Great War, by conquering the Asian colonies of the defeated European powers, as well as the Philippines from the United States during this first war of “liberation”.
Then there was the Tanaka Memorial (田中上奏文, Tanaka Jōsōbun), an alleged Japanese strategic planning document from 1927 in which Prime Minister Baron Tanaka Giichi laid out for Emperor Hirohito a strategy to take over the world. The authenticity of the document was long accepted, but scholars now agree that it was a masterful anti-Japanese hoax, created by the Chinese United Front (even if it could very well have been true like the other documents). The Tanaka Memorial was first published in the December 1929 edition of the Chinese publication "時事月報" (Current Affairs Monthly) in Nanking, a Nationalist Chinese publication. It was reproduced on 24 September 1931 on pp. 923–34 of China Critic, an English publication in Shanghai. The memorial contains the assertions:
- In order to take over the world, you need to take over Asia;
- In order to take over Asia, you need to take over China;
- In order to take over China, you need to take over Manchuria and Mongolia.
- If we succeed in conquering China, the rest of the Asiatic countries and the South Sea countries will fear us and surrender to us.
- Then the world will realize that Eastern Asia is ours.
The English translation of this document was in circulation before February 1934, and formed the foundation of the lead article on the front page of the first edition of The Plain Truth magazine published by Herbert W. Armstrong in February of that year, although it had first appeared in the less widely circulated Communist International magazine in 1931. The Tanaka Memorial was depicted extensively by United States wartime propaganda as a sort of Japanese counterpart to Mein Kampf. The installments The Battle of China and Prelude to War of Frank Capra's Academy Award-winning movie series Why We Fight describe the Tanaka Memorial as the document that was the Japanese plan for war with the United States. The Tanaka Memorial was depicted the same way in Know Your Enemy: Japan, also directed by Capra during the war. As presented in these movies, the five sequential steps to achieve Japan's goal of conquests are:
- Conquest of Manchuria
- Conquest of China
- Conquest of the Soviet Union or Siberia
- Establishment of bases in the Pacific
- Conquest of the United States
The Co-Prosperity Sphere (CPS or C-PS): Review of the Japanese Government Document The unity of nations offers political, economic, and social benefits to the member nations. Unity is evident in unions such as the United States of America and the European Union. During Second Great War, Japan also created such unity for Asian countries. Japan wanted to enforce the Imperial Way on the people and resources of East Asia. The affected countries were those in the Pacific, Indian Ocean, and Central Asia regions. The nations included Japan, China, India, and Manchuria. Japan intended to ‘delivering’ these nations from the rule of America and Europe. These countries would be guided by peace and prosperity for all, unlike in the Western nations where individuals ‘fight’ each other for success. However, it is important to note that the establishment would be for the benefit of Japan more than other nations. The Imperial Way was a law by the Japanese system, and thus, little consideration was given for the laws of other governments.
The Imperial government wanted to establish an Imperial Way across East Asia and the Pacific, while abandon the spreading ‘Western individualism and materialism.’ This plan required driving out the British and American people out of the region. The drafters believed that the Westerns were responsible for the issues in the region. America and Europe usually follow an individualistic philosophy. Individualism believes in the promotion of individual interest. In Western nations, it is a common practice where people compete with each other for individual benefit. The Japanese government saw this practice as detrimental to the development of East Asia and the Pacific. This is because individualism creates a gap between the rich as the poor. Also, the competition for self-success comes at the cost of loss of welfare for others. For instance, the rich will oppress the poor so as to maintain their wealth level. The achievement of individualism is guided by materialism, that is, the greed for more wealth without regard to others. Materialism values physical possession than spiritual ‘wealth.’ It considers wealth as the core life objective. These beliefs contradicted the Imperial Way, which was concerned about spiritual well-being. It believes that wealth comes second to human interests, such as peace and love. Therefore, the Imperial Way differed from Western individualism and materialism by purporting to support unity and prosperity for all.
The drafters believed that materialism was one of the causes of conflict, and more specifically, the First Great War and the Second Great War. As each nation wants to increase its wealth, it reaches a limit where any additional increase will require taking up some of the property of the neighbor. The neighbor, in the protection of their property, responds violently. As a result, the neighbors go to war. The Japanese government believed that greed is what had pushed the Westerns into exploiting Asia’s wealth. The empire thus believed that the Imperial way could eliminate national conflict among neightbors. People would not work to increase individual wealth but rather the community’s wealth. As a result, conflict can be avoided, and peace and prosperity for all would prevail. In conclusion, the Japanese government purported to be opposing individualism and materialism. However, through uniting the East Asian nation, the empire would be separating itself from other regions. The Japanese government wanted to maintain wealth in the regions and only use the resources for improving the lives of the Asians. Therefore, while within the region, there would be no individualism, from a global perspective, Japan would have developed itself as self-reliant, thus creating individualism from other regions of the world. Furthermore, it would create wealth for its member nations. Thus, through unity, the empire would still be promoting individualism and materialism from a regional perspective.