Kokumin Dōmei

Kokumin Dōmei (国民同盟, National Citizens' Alliance) was a Japanese fascist political party in Japan active in the 1930s.

Kokumin Dōmei 国民同盟
Leader	Adachi Kenzō
Founded	December 22, 1932
Dissolved	July 26, 1940
Preceded by	Kakushintō
Merged into	Imperial Rule Assistance Association
Headquarters	Tokyo
Ideology	Fascism[1] Controlled economism[1]
Political position	Far-right
Politics of Japan Political parties Elections

Kokumin Dōmei meeting, 1933

In 1931, Home Minister Adachi Kenzō spoke out strongly in support of the Imperial Japanese Army’s unauthorized incursions into Manchuria and against the diplomatic policies pursued by Kijūrō Shidehara, and was expelled from the ranks of the Rikken Minseitō. Joining together with Nakano Seigō, Akira Kazami, and others, Adachi formed the right-wing political organization Kokumin Dōmei in December 1932

The Kokumin Dōmei advocated a form of state socialism or corporatism with government control of strategic industries and financial institutions, and the creation of a Japan-Manchukuo economic union.

The new party consisted mainly of defectors from the Minseitō, and had an original strength of 32 seats in the Diet of Japan. In 1934, it demanded an inquiry into the Teijin Incident in an effort to bring down the cabinet of Prime Minister Saitō Makoto.[2] However, in 1935, many members returned to the Minseitō fold, and in 1936, Nakano left the party to form the Tōhōkai the following year, and Kazami joining Fumimaro Konoe’s think tank, the Shōwa Kenkyūkai. In the 1937 General Election, the party's strength fell from 32 seats to 11 seats.

In June 1940, The Kokumin Dōmei was merged into the Imperial Rule Assistance Association as part of Hideki Tōjō's efforts to create a one-party state, and thereafter ceased to exist.

References

• Mitchell, Richard H (2002). Justice in Japan: The Notorious Teijin Scandal. University of Hawaii Press. ISBN 0-8248-2523-3.
• Sims, Richard (1990). Japanese Political History Since the Meiji Renovation 1868-2000. University of California Press. ISBN 0-520-06838-6.

Notes

1. Kenzo Kitagawa. "Explanation of Encyclopedia Nipponica". Kotobank (in Japanese). Asahi Shimbun. Retrieved 14 December 2019.
2. Mitchell. Justice in Japan. Page 71-72