ABSTRACT
The Japanese have continuously debated their defense policy since they regained their independence in 1952. In fact, defense policy has never left the center of the political vortex, drawing defense specialist and non-specialists alike in perhaps the most divisive of all partisan debates in postwar Japan. At the same time, the two political documents, signed by Yoshida Shigeru-led Conservatives in 1951, and the Progressives’ reactions also offered political opportunities to be exploited by the Conservatives. The divisions deepened with the return of scores of prewar political leaders to public life. The significance of the Yoshida-Hatoyama contest in the crucial years between 1951 and 1955 goes beyond the ousting of the very architect of the basic political framework for post-Occupation Japan. The Yoshida supporters criticized Hatoyama for tampering with what they believed was a sound and resilient political framework for the post-Occupation political development.
