Office of the Historian

740.00119 Control (Japan)/12–1545

Memorandum by the Acting Political Adviser in Japan (Atcheson)48
Tokyo, December 13, 1945.

Memorandum for: The Supreme Commander and Chief of Staff

This Mission has just received from the Department of State copies [Page 883] of (1) a preliminary report “Reform of the Japanese Governmental System”, October 22, 1945, prepared by the Department for the consideration of the State-War-Navy Coordinating Subcommittee for the Far East; and (2) a revision of the “Conclusions” of the above report prepared in the Department at the Subcommittee’s request and submitted for its consideration on November 13, 1945.49

While the recommendations in both documents, the latter being a revision in form rather than in substance, are generally the same as set forth in the Department’s telegram of October 17 [16] (War SVC 5477, State Serial No. 38),50 two recommendations of substance and one of procedure have been added, as follows:

  • “5. The Supreme Commander should also suggest:
    (a)
    That modification of Articles 1, 3, and 4 of the Constitution, defining the special prerogatives of the Emperor, may be necessary if a democratic government responsible to the will of the people is to be established;
    (b)
    That the political power of the Home Minister would be lessened and the Japanese people would have more direction over local affairs if the governors of the prefectures were elected by popular vote.
  • “6. Only as a last resort should the Supreme Commander order the Japanese Government to effect the above listed reforms, as the knowledge that they had been imposed by the Allies would materially reduce the possibility of their acceptance and support by the Japanese people for the future.”

Dr. Matsumoto Joji, officially charged with the responsibility for drawing up a draft revision, of the Constitution, has twice stated, the first time at a press conference on August 25 and the second in response to an interpellation in the Diet on December 8, that Articles 1 through 4 of the Constitution would probably remain unaffected in the Government’s proposed revision, and that, in his opinion, “there will be no change in the fundamental principle of the sovereignty and control of state affairs of the Emperor.” While Home Minister Horikiri has on several occasions stated that the Government plans to introduce a bill for the election of prefectural governors, he has indicated that it has not yet been decided whether it will propose election by popular vote or by indirect election by the prefectural assemblies.

Since the discontinuation in early November of this Office’s informal conversations with Konoye, there have been no further discussions to our knowledge of constitutional revision by American and Japanese officials at a working level. There would seem real danger, [Page 884] if an effective liaison at this level is not reestablished, that the Japanese Government, working in ignorance of specific American desires and requirements, may arrive at an advanced stage in the preparation of a draft revision which fails signally to satisfy those desires and requirements. There would then arise the need which the preliminary State-War-Navy documents warn against, of formally ordering the necessary changes, reducing the possibility of their long-range acceptance and support by the Japanese people.

For your consideration I should accordingly wish to suggest that, in order that Dr. Matsumoto’s committee may have a clear conception of American governmental thinking in regard to details, some working level liaison be established with him for this purpose, possibly by the Government Section of General Headquarters. For purposes of ready reference there is attached a copy of the “Amended Conclusions” of SFE 142/1, November 14, 1945. This paper is not, of course, final but from our understanding of the matter we believe that it closely reflects the Government’s thinking and that the final paper will not be substantially modified.

George Atcheson, Jr.

American Minister
  1. Copy transmitted to the Department by the Acting Political Adviser in Japan in his despatch 105, December 15; received January 2, 1946.↩
  2. Neither printed.↩
  3. Ante, p. 757.↩