ABSTRACT
Any discussion of the relationship between the fortunes of the Left and the development of democracy in Japan would be incomplete without an analysis of the role of teachers’ unions. Not only were debates about education policy at the heart of the ideological cleavage that defined the ‘1955 System’, but the main teachers’ union, Nikkyōso, acted as a massive bedrock of support for the public sector union movement and the Japan Socialist Party (JSP). During the 1980s and 1990s decisive transformations occurred, both within Nikkyōso and with regard to its relationships with its political allies and enemies. These transformations were both affected by and had an effect on fundamental changes that were taking place within the world of Japanese politics. For the union and for other political actors, the main events that changed the landscape of Japanese politics occurred between 1989 and 1996. This chapter, therefore, proposes to divide its examination of Nikkyōso’s role in the transformation of Japanese politics into three periods: the ‘1955 system’; the period 1989-96 during which that system clearly came to an end; and events and trends subsequent to 1996. Before looking at these periods in turn, we will first discuss the political and ideological terminology that will be used in this chapter.
