Shūji Masutani (益谷秀次; 17 January 1888–18 August 1973) was a Japanese jurist and politician who was a member of the
Liberal Democratic Party
Several political parties from around the world have been called the Liberal Democratic Party, Democratic Liberal Party or Liberal Democrats. These parties have usually followed liberalism as ideology, although they can vary widely from very progr ...
. He served at the
House of Representatives
House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...
for a long time.
Biography
Masutani was born in Ushitsu Town,
Ishikawa Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu island. Ishikawa Prefecture has a population of 1,096,721 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,186 Square kilometre, km2 (1,616 sq mi). Ishikawa Pr ...
, on 17 January 1888.
He was a graduate of both the
University of Tokyo
The University of Tokyo (, abbreviated as in Japanese and UTokyo in English) is a public research university in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1877 as the nation's first modern university by the merger of several pre-westernisation era ins ...
and
Kyoto University
, or , is a National university, national research university in Kyoto, Japan. Founded in 1897, it is one of the former Imperial Universities and the second oldest university in Japan.
The university has ten undergraduate faculties, eighteen gra ...
.
Masutani joined the Liberal Democratic Party in the 1920s. He was part of the factions led by Shigeru Yoshida
was a Japanese diplomat and politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1946 to 1947 and again from 1948 to 1954, serving through most of the country's occupation after World War II. Yoshida played a major role in determining the cour ...
and then by Hayato Ikeda
was a Japanese politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1960 to 1964. He is best known for his Income Doubling Plan, which promised to double the size of Japan's economy in 10 years, and for presiding over the 1964 Tokyo Olympics. ...
. Masutani served as the chairman of the executive board of the party between 1950 and 1952.[ He was elected to the House of Representatives many times.
Masutani held various posts, including secretary to the president of the board of census, parliamentary vice minister of foreign affairs and construction minister under ]Prime Minister
A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...
Shigeru Yoshida.[ In 1951 he was appointed state minister to the cabinet led by Shigeru Yoshida, but he was soon dropped from the office.][ Between 1955 and 1958 he served as speaker of the House of Representatives. In the period between 1959 and 1960 he was the deputy prime minister, minister of state and director of the administrative management agency in the cabinet led by Prime Minister ]Nobusuke Kishi
was a Japanese bureaucrat and politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan, prime minister of Japan from 1957 to 1960. He is remembered for his exploitative economic management of the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo in China in the 1930s, ...
. In 1961 he was appointed chairman of the investigative commission on security. He was in office until 1967 when Naka Funada became the chairman of the commission.[
In October 1972 Masutani retired from politics and died of heart attack in Noto, ]Ishikawa Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshu island. Ishikawa Prefecture has a population of 1,096,721 (1 January 2025) and has a geographic area of 4,186 Square kilometre, km2 (1,616 sq mi). Ishikawa Pr ...
, on 18 August 1983.
Masutani was the recipient of the Order of the Rising Sun
The is a Japanese honors system, Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge feat ...
, First Class Grand Cordon, which was awarded to him 1961.[
]
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Masutani, Shuji
20th-century jurists
1888 births
1973 deaths
Deputy prime ministers of Japan
Japanese jurists
Liberal Democratic Party (Japan) politicians
Kyoto University alumni
Speakers of the House of Representatives (Japan)
Ministers of land, infrastructure, transport and tourism of Japan
University of Tokyo alumni
Grand Cordons of the Order of the Rising Sun
People from Ishikawa Prefecture