Kakushin Sētō means reformist party or progressive party in English. Kakushin Sētō is generally 'anti-conservative', and in Japan, it has generally referred to

democratic socialist Democratic socialism is a left-wing political philosophy that supports political democracy and some form of a socially owned economy, with a particular emphasis on economic democracy, workplace democracy, and workers' self-management withi ...

social democratic Social democracy is a Political philosophy, political, Social philosophy, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports Democracy, political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocati ...

and socially progressive parties that respect parliamentary democracy. Japan's "progressive parties" are basically opposed to constitutional amendments led by right-wing conservatives, so they are partly in solidarity with "

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

parties". In general, while the Liberal Democratic Party has a strong conservative tendency and the

Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of '' The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. ...

has shown a strong progressive tendency. in the Japanese political spectrum. In the 21st century, not only traditional

parties but also some progressive liberal parties began to be regarded as part of the Kakushin Sētō in the Japanese political context.

List of Kakushin Sētō

During the Japanese Empire

* 1926: During this period, as the proletarian movement was activated, the legitimate socialist party

Labour-Farmer Party The was a political party in the Empire of Japan. It represented the left-wing sector of the legal proletarian movement at the time.Mackie, Vera C. Creating Socialist Women in Japan: Gender, Labour and Activism, 1900–1937'. Cambridge: Cam ...

was founded. * 1926: At that time, moderate socialists who were compliant with the system formed the

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Fo ...

. At that time, it showed the relatively most conservative tendency among Japan's three major proletarian parties. * 1928: The

was forcibly disbanded as the government launched a massive crackdown on socialist forces. * 1932: Moderate leftists supporting the constitutional rule of the Japanese Empire founded

Shakai Taishūtō The was a moderate leftist political party in early Shōwa period Empire of Japan. The ''Shakai Taishūtō'' was founded by Abe Isoo in July 1932, as a merger of the ''Shakai Minshūtō'' (Socialist Mass Party) with the '' Zenkoku Rōnō Taish ...

. * 1940: With the establishment of a one-party system led by the Shōwa statist

Imperial Rule Assistance Association The , or Imperial Aid Association, was the Empire of Japan's ruling organization during much of World War II. It was created by Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe on 12 October 1940, to promote the goals of his ("New Order") movement. It evolved i ...

(IRAA), Shakai Taishūtō was absorbed into IRAA, and all other Kakushin Sētō were banned.

Post-war Japan

* 1945: After the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

, Japan's non-communist socialist forces united to form the

Japan Socialist Party The was a socialist and progressive political party in Japan that existed from 1945 to 1996. The party was founded as the Social Democratic Party of Japan by members of several proletarian parties that existed before World War II, including t ...

. * 1945: Around December, Japan's militaristic system collapsed and Western democracy was introduced, making the

Japanese Communist Party The is a left-wing to far-left political party in Japan. With approximately 270,000 members belonging to 18,000 branches, it is one of the largest non-governing communist parties in the world. The party advocates the establishment of a democ ...

legal. * 1950: After World War II, the U.S. military ruled Okinawa, and the opposing left-wing forces founded the

Okinawa Social Mass Party is a local political party in Okinawa, Japan. The party's name is abbreviated as or . The party primarily adheres to social democracy. History The party was founded on 31 October 1950 during the US occupation of the region. On 29 April 1952, ...

. * 1996: Japan Socialist Party changed its name to

. * 2017: When the centrist/liberal

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

attempted to be reasonable with the constitutionalist (supporting the constitutional amendment) right-wing party

Kibō no Tō was a conservative political party in Japan founded by Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike. The party was founded just before the call of the 2017 general election. The party's ideology was mainly Japanese conservatism and nationalism. Kibō no Tō ...

, led by Yuriko Koike, progressive-liberals and constitutionalists in the party against it create the liberal-leaning

Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan The (CDP or CDPJ) is a social-liberal political party in Japan. It was founded in October 2017 as a split from the Democratic Party ahead of the 2017 general election. In late 2020, the party was re-founded following a merger with majoriti ...

. * 2019: When the "

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a l ...

" attempted to merge with the centrist/liberal-conservative "

Democratic Party for the People The , abbreviated to DPP or DPFP, is a centre to centre-right political party in Japan. The party was formed on 7 May 2018 from the merger of the Democratic Party and Kibō no Tō (''Party of Hope''). In September 2020 a majority of the pa ...

", left-wing liberals who opposed it founded

Reiwa Shinsengumi is a left-wing populist and progressive political party in Japan founded by actor-turned-politician Tarō Yamamoto in April 2019. The party was formed by left-wing members of the Liberal Party who opposed its merger with the Democratic Party f ...

. * 2020: The liberal-leaning "Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan" (old CDP) of Japan was reasonable with the centrist/liberal-conservative "Democratic Party for the People", and the new party's name was "Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan" (new CDP)

Controversy

The terms "Kakushin" or "left-wing" (左派) have been criticized for being misused by mainstream

Japanese media The mass media in Japan include numerous television and radio networks as well as newspapers and magazines in Japan. For the most part, television networks were established based on capital investments by existing radio networks. Variety shows ...

and Japanese conservatives as

red-baiting Red-baiting, also known as ''reductio ad Stalinum'' () and red-tagging (in the Philippines), is an intention to discredit the validity of a political opponent and the opponent's logical argument by accusing, denouncing, attacking, or persecuting ...

terms to attack South Korean liberals. The reason is that South Korean liberals have anti-Japan sentiment for historical reasons. For example, by South Korean political standards, the DPK does not classify the

Democratic Party of Korea The Democratic Party of Korea (DPK; ), formerly known as the New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD), is a liberal political party in South Korea. Controlling the unicameral National Assembly as of 2022, the DPK is regarded as one of two ma ...

(DPK) as a " jinbojeongdang" () because it is generally considered a socially conservative rather than the

U.S. Democratic Party The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States. Founded in 1828, it was predominantly built by Martin Van Buren, who assembled a wide cadre of politicians in every state behind war hero And ...

, but it is common for the U.S. Democratic Party to classify it as a "jinbojeongdang". However, even though major Japanese media rarely refer to the U.S. Democratic Party as "Kakushin Sētō", they often refer to the Democratic Party of Korea as "Kakushin Sētō". South Korean liberals are criticizing these mainstream Japanese media and Japanese conservatives. According to

Moon Chung-in Moon Chung-in (born 25 March 1951, in Jeju Province, South Korea) is a Special Advisor to President Moon Jae-in of South Korea for Foreign Affairs and National Security. He is also a Distinguished University Professor of Yonsei University, Kra ...

, Japanese conservatives pointed out that referring to South Korean liberals as "Kakushin" is red-baiting, equating them with the

and the

. Moon Chung-in also said that

Moon Jae-in Moon Jae-in (; ; born 24 January 1953) is a South Korean former politician, civil servant and lawyer who served as the 12th president of South Korea between 2017 and 2022. Prior to his presidency, he served as Senior Secretary for Civil Affairs an ...

government and DPK support "Gaehyeok" (改革) in the South Korean political context, but not "Kakushin" (革新) in the Japanese political context.https://www.yna.co.kr/view/AKR20181001110500001

References

Anti-militarism Pacifism Political terminology in Japan Social democratic parties in Japan

List of Kakushin Sētō

During the Japanese Empire

Post-war Japan

Controversy

See also

References