Planning for empire: reform bureaucrats and the Japanese wartime state

239 Pages·2016·1.077 MB·English

by  Mimura, Janis

PLANNING FOR EMPIRE
Studies of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University
The Weatherhead East Asian Institute is Columbia University’s center for research,
publication, and teaching on modern and contemporary East Asia regions. The
Studies of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute were inaugurated in 1962 to
bring to a wider public the results of significant new research on modern and
contemporary East Asia.
Planning for
Empir e
Reform Bureaucrats and
the Japanese Wartime State
Janis Mimura
CORNELL UNIVERSITY PRESS, ITHACA AND LONDON
Copyright © 2011 by Cornell University
All rights reserved. Except for brief quotations in a review, this book, or parts
thereof, must not be reproduced in any form without permission in writing from
the publisher. For information, address Cornell University Press, Sage House,
512 East State Street, Ithaca, New York 14850.
First published 2011 by Cornell University Press
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Mimura, Janis, 1963–
Planning for empire : reform bureaucrats and the Japanese wartime state /
Janis Mimura.
p. cm. — (Studies of the Weatherhead East Asian Institute, Columbia University)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-8014-4926-0 (cloth : alk. paper)
1. Japan—Politics and government—1926–1945. 2. Bureaucracy—Japan—
History. 3. Technological innovations—Japan—History. 4. Fascism—
Japan—History. 5. Civil-military relations—Japan—History. 6. Manchuria
(China)—History—1931–1945. I. Title. II. Series: Studies of the Weatherhead
East Asian Institute, Columbia University.
DS888.5.M546 2011
952.03'3—dc22 2010037180
Cornell University Press strives to use environmentally responsible suppliers and
materials to the fullest extent possible in the publishing of its books. Such materials
include vegetable-based, low-VOC inks and acid-free papers that are recycled, totally
chlorine-free, or partly composed of nonwood fibers. For further information, visit
our website at www.cornellpress.cornell.edu.
Cloth printing 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For my father, Takuo Mimura,
and in memory of my mother, Akiko Mimura

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction 1
1. Japan’s Wartime Technocrats 7
2. Military Fascism and Manchukuo, 1930 –36 41
3. Bureaucratic Visions of Manchukuo, 1933–39 70
4. Ideologues of Fascism: Okumura Kiwao and Mo¯ri Hideoto 107
5. The New Order and the Politics of Reform, 1940–41 138
6. Japan’s Opportunity: Technocratic Strategies
for War and Empire, 1941–45 170
Epilogue: From Wartime Techno-Fascism
to Postwar Managerialism 195
Bibliography 201
Index 221

Acknowledgments
I am grateful for the assistance that I have received from numerous individuals
and institutions in completing this study. First and foremost, I thank my teachers
at Berkeley, Andrew Barshay and Irwin Scheiner, whose guidance, enthusiasm,
and support sustained me in the long road to this book. In Japan, I am indebted
to Kobayashi Hideo, Hara Akira, Imura Tetsuo, Ito¯ Takashi, Kawahara Hiroshi,
and Kudo¯ Akira for generously sharing their time, advice, and insights on war-
time Japan. Masayo Takashi helped me access valuable Manchuria archives, and
Kobayashi Hideo, Imura Tetsuo, and Satoshi Sasaki shared some of their own
primary documents on wartime planning. In the process of research and writing
I benefitted from the advice and assistance of Katalin Ferber, Louise Young, Ger-
ald Feldman, Michael Barnhart, Miles Fletcher, Bai Gao, Mark Metzler, Tatsushi
Hirono, Sharon Holt, and Donna Rilling. The book was considerably improved
by the detailed comments and suggestions of Larry Frohman, Richard Smethurst,
and two anonymous readers from Cornell University Press. I thank Roger Hay-
don at Cornell University Press for his expert guidance and Jack Rummel for
copy editing the manuscript. I also wish to thank Carol Gluck, Kim Brandt, and
the staff at the Weatherhead East Asian Institute for their assistance in publishing
this book.
Research and writing were made possible by grants from the Fulbright Foun-
dation; University of California at Berkeley, Department of Education Foreign
Area Language Studies Program; the New York State United University Pro-
fession Drescher Program; and the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst.
Kirsten Refsing and the Department of Japanese Studies at the University of
Hong Kong provided me with a congenial place to write. Carl Steenstrup and
Franz Waldenberger arranged for my affiliation as a visiting scholar at the Uni-
versity of Munich. I warmly thank Kobayashi Hiroko, Miyahara Hiromichi,
Susan Barclay, John Lee, Pam Burdman, Allison Rottman, George Mimura, and
Laura Mimura for their assistance during my various travels between the United
States, Germany, and Japan. Finally, I cannot adequately express my gratitude
for the patient and loving support of my husband, Martin Kock, and daughters,
Karina and Vivien.
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