, also known as or was a Japanese political activist known for his perennial candidacy. He was the leader and founder of the World Economic Community Party (). He was born in

Ginowan, Okinawa ( ryu, ジノーン, translit=Jinōn) is a city located in Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2012, the city has an estimated population of 94,405, with 40,041 households and a population density of 4,838.8 persons per km2. The total area is 19. ...

on February 5, 1944. After graduating from

Chuo University , commonly referred to as or , is a private flagship research university in Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1885 as Igirisu Hōritsu Gakkō (the English Law School), Chuo is one of the oldest and most prestigious institutions in the country. The univer ...

in Tokyo in 1968, he moved back to Okinawa and ran a '' juku'', a private school. Matayoshi was trained as a

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

preacher, and through his religious studies developed a particular concept of

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesu ...

strongly influenced by

eschatology Eschatology (; ) concerns expectations of the end of the present age, human history, or of the world itself. The end of the world or end times is predicted by several world religions (both Abrahamic and non-Abrahamic), which teach that neg ...

. In 1997, he established the World Economic Community Party, a political party based on his conviction that he was

God In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

. His concept was both religious and political, a mix of

Christian eschatology Christian eschatology, a major branch of study within Christian theology, deals with "last things". Such eschatology – the word derives from two Greek roots meaning "last" () and "study" (-) – involves the study of "end things", whether ...

Augustine Augustine of Hippo ( , ; la, Aurelius Augustinus Hipponensis; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430), also known as Saint Augustine, was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Af ...

's ''

De civitate Dei ''On the City of God Against the Pagans'' ( la, De civitate Dei contra paganos), often called ''The City of God'', is a book of Christian philosophy written in Latin by Augustine of Hippo in the early 5th century AD. The book was in response ...

'' ("City of God") and

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

collectivism. He died from illness on July 20, 2018.

Political program

According to his programme he would have executed the

Last Judgment The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religi ...

, but within the current political system. His first step was to have been appointed the

Prime Minister of Japan The prime minister of Japan ( Japanese: 内閣総理大臣, Hepburn: ''Naikaku Sōri-Daijin'') is the head of government of Japan. The prime minister chairs the Cabinet of Japan and has the ability to select and dismiss its Ministers of Stat ...

. Then he would have reformed Japanese society and be offered the post of the

Secretary-General of the United Nations The secretary-general of the United Nations (UNSG or SG) is the chief administrative officer of the United Nations and head of the United Nations Secretariat, one of the United Nations System#Six principal organs, six principal organs of the Un ...

. Matayoshi would then have reigned over the whole world with two legitimate authorities, not only religious but also political. The world economic system would have been altered to encourage every nation to be self-sufficient, based on agriculture. He condemned

permanent residency Permanent residency is a person's legal resident status in a country or territory of which such person is not a citizen but where they have the right to reside on a permanent basis. This is usually for a permanent period; a person with su ...

and the

naturalisation Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the i ...

of foreigners because he viewed the abandonment of one's motherland to be wrong. He wanted ethnically non-Japanese people to go back to their ancestral homeland even if they were born in Japan. He wanted the US to withdraw its army from all overseas positions, including Okinawa. After his Judgment he would have thrown the corrupt into the Fire (see

Book of Revelation The Book of Revelation is the final book of the New Testament (and consequently the final book of the Christian Bible). Its title is derived from the first word of the Koine Greek text: , meaning "unveiling" or "revelation". The Book o ...

Elections

Matayoshi presented himself as a candidate in many elections from 1997 through to 2013, despite winning none of them. He became well known for his eccentric campaigns in which he urged opponents to commit suicide by

hara-kiri , sometimes referred to as hara-kiri (, , a native Japanese kun reading), is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. It was originally reserved for samurai in their code of honour but was also practised by other Japanese people ...

(disembowelment; note that he avoided the more polite ''seppuku'') and said that he will cast them into

Gehenna The Valley of Hinnom ( he, , lit=Valley of the son of Hinnom, translit=Gēʾ ḇen-Hīnnōm) is a historic valley surrounding Ancient Jerusalem from the west and southwest. The valley is also known by the name Gehinnom ( ''Gēʾ-Hīnnōm'' ...

. Like most Japanese politicians, he campaigned in a single small regulation size mini-van fitted with oversized loudspeakers. Unlike most, however, he blasted his campaign slogans in a stylised,

kabuki is a classical form of Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for its heavily-stylised performances, the often-glamorous costumes worn by performers, and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. Kabuki is thought ...

-inspired voice.

Unsuccessful candidacies

* Mayor of Ginowan election (1997) *

1998 Japanese House of Councillors election House of Councillors elections were held in Japan on 12 July 1998. The LDP under Ryūtarō Hashimoto had restored single-party government in 1996 and was now aiming to also regain clear control of the House of Councillors where it was several se ...

(

Okinawa at-large district The Okinawa at-large district is a constituency of the House of Councillors in the Diet of Japan (national legislature). It consists of the entire prefecture of Okinawa and was created in 1970 following the agreement between US president Richard ...

) * Governor of

Okinawa Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest cit ...

election (1998) * Mayor of Ginowan election (2001) * Mayor of

Nago ''Nagu'', Kunigami: ''Naguu'' is a city located in the northern part of Okinawa Island, Okinawa Prefecture, Japan. As of December 2012, the city has an estimated population of 61,659 and a population density of 288 persons per km2. Its tot ...

election (2002) * Governor of Okinawa Prefecture election (2002) *

2003 Japanese general election General elections were held in Japan on November 9, 2003. Incumbent Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of the Liberal Democrat Party won the election but with a reduced majority. The main opposition Democratic Party made considerable gains, winni ...

(

Tokyo 1st district Tokyo 1st district (東京都第1区, ''Tōkyō-to dai-ikku'' or 東京1区, ''Tōkyō ikku'') is a constituency of the House of Representatives in the Diet of Japan (national legislature). It is located in eastern mainland Tokyo and covers cent ...

) *

2004 Japanese House of Councillors election House of Councillors elections were held in Japan on 11 July 2004. The House of Councillors consists of 242 members who serve six-year terms. Approximately half the members are elected every three years. At these elections 121 members were elect ...

( Tokyo at-large district) *

2005 Japanese general election General elections were held in Japan on 11 September 2005 for all 480 seats of the House of Representatives of Japan, the lower house of the Diet of Japan, almost two years before the end of the term taken from the last election in 2003. Prime ...

(

) *

2007 Japanese House of Councillors election House of Councillors elections were held in Japan on July 29, 2007. The date was originally to be July 22, but the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) decided in mid-June to extend the session of the House for a week to finish up legislative b ...

( Tokyo at-large district) * 2009 Japanese general election (

) *

2010 Japanese House of Councillors election House of Councillors elections were held in Japan on July 11, 2010. In the previous elections in 2007 the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) had lost its majority to the Democratic Party (DPJ), which managed to gain the largest margin since its for ...

( Tokyo at-large district) *

2013 Japanese House of Councillors election House of Councillors elections were held in Japan on July 21, 2013 to elect the members of the upper house of the National Diet. In the previous elections in 2010, the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) remained the largest party, but the DPJ-led ...

( Tokyo at-large district) *

2014 Japanese general election General elections were held in Japan on 14 December 2014. Voting took place in all Representatives constituencies of Japan including proportional blocks to elect the members of the House of Representatives, the lower house of the National Di ...

(

) *

2016 Japanese House of Councillors election House of Councillors elections were held in Japan on Sunday 10 July 2016 to elect 121 of the 242 members of the House of Councillors, the upper house of the National Diet, for a term of six years. As a result of the election, the Liberal Democr ...

( Tokyo at-large district) *

2017 Japanese general election General elections were held in Japan on 22 October 2017. Voting took place in all Representatives constituencies of Japan – 289 single-member districts and eleven proportional blocks – in order to appoint all 465 members (down from 475) of ...

(

)

References

External links

Mainichi article featuring him and other unusual candidates

Official website (in Japanese)

Unofficial website (in Japanese)

2Spare – Top 10 Most Eccentric People you didn't know
{{DEFAULTSORT:Matayoshi, Iesu 1944 births 2018 deaths Chuo University alumni Deified Japanese people Japanese political candidates Self-declared messiahs Japanese Protestants People from Okinawa Prefecture

Political program

Elections

Unsuccessful candidacies

See also

References

External links