Katsuo Okazaki

Katsuo Okazaki (岡崎 勝男, Okazaki Katsuo, 10 July 1897 – 10 October 1965) was a Japanese sportsman, diplomat and political figure. He served as the Japanese foreign minister in the 1950s. He was also the final – and only Japanese – chairman of the Shanghai Municipal Council.

Katsuo Okazaki
Minister for Foreign Affairs
In office 30 October 1952 – 9 December 1954
Prime Minister	Shigeru Yoshida
Preceded by	Shigeru Yoshida
Succeeded by	Mamoru Shigemitsu
Chief Cabinet Secretary
In office 6 May 1950 – 26 December 1951
Prime Minister	Shigeru Yoshida
Preceded by	Kaneshichi Masuda
Succeeded by	Shigeru Hori
Chairman of the Shanghai Municipal Council
In office 5 January 1942 – 1 August 1943
Preceded by	John Hellyer Liddell
Succeeded by	Council disbanded
Personal details
Born	10 July 1897 Kanagawa, Japan
Died	10 October 1965 (aged 68) Tokyo, Japan
Political party	Liberal Democratic Party (1955–1963)
Other political affiliations	Democratic Liberal Party (1949–1950) Liberal Party (1950–1955)
Alma mater	Tokyo Imperial University

Early life

Okazaki was born on 10 July 1897 in Kanagawa, Japan. He was the 10th son of Yasunosuke Okazaki.[1] He studied law at the University of Tokyo and then joined the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.[2]

Sporting prowess

Okazaki participated in the 1924 Paris Olympic Summer Games, qualifying for the 5,000 m final with a time of 15.22.2e.[3] In the final, he fainted in the heatwave and was carried away by medics.[4] He had much success at the Far Eastern Championship Games, winning the mile run at the 1921 Games then doing a middle-distance double in the mile and 880 yards at the 1923 event in Osaka.[5]

Consular positions

Okasaki served as second secretary to the Japanese Embassy in Washington, D.C. in the early 1930s.[6]

He also served in numerous positions in China during the 1930s, including serving as Japanese Consul-General in Nanjing after the Fall of Nanking to the Imperial Japanese Army and during the Nanking Massacre. In 1938, he was serving as Japanese Consul General in Canton.[7] In October 1939 was appointed Japanese Consul at Hong Kong, a position he held until January 1941.[8]

Shanghai Municipal Council

In early January 1942 he was appointed as Chairman of the Shanghai Municipal Council after the British and American members resigned following the commencement of the Pacific War and the occupation of the Shanghai International Settlement by Japanese troops.[9] He served until 1943 when the Council was disbanded.

Surrender of Japan

The Japanese representatives on board USS Missouri during the surrender ceremonies on 2 September 1945. Okazaki is in the second row, second from the left (in top hat).

Okazaki took part in the surrender negotiations between the Japanese emissaries and American military officials on Iejima in 1945. He was present as a representative of Japan at the formal surrender on 2 September 1945 aboard the USS Missouri.

Post-war political and diplomatic career

Okazaki in 1951

Okazaki was elected to the Japanese House of Representatives in 1949. In 1951, he was appointed by Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida as Chief Cabinet Secretary and state minister without portfolio.[2]

In 1952, he was appointed Foreign Minister and served in that position until 1954. In 1954, building on work by Ikeda, Okazaki signed a Mutual Security Assistance (MSA) Agreement with U.S. Ambassador John Allison.[10]

In 1961 he was called out of retirement to serve in the United Nations in what was described at the time as a move to strengthen the Japanese delegation. He served as Japan's delegate to the United Nations from April 1961 to July 1963.[11]

Death

Okazaki died on 10 October 1965 in Tokyo of a stomach ulcer at the age of 68.[11]

Family members

Okazaki was married to Shimako with whom he had a son, Taro, and a daughter, Yoshiko.[12]

He is the grandfather of the Japanese-American figure skater Kyoko Ina, Yoshiko's daughter.[13]

References

1. 『第廿一版 人事興信録 上』
2. Obituary, New York Times, Oct 12, 1965, p47
3. Sports Reference for Katsuo Okazaki
4. Raevuori, Antero (1997). Paavo Nurmi, juoksijoiden kuningas (in Finnish) (2nd ed.). WSOY. p. 174. ISBN 951-0-21850-2.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
5. Far Eastern Championships. GBR Athletics. Retrieved on 2014-12-18.
6. T Maga, Judgment at Tokyo: The Japanese War Crimes Trials, p. 41
7. China Monthly Review Volume 86, page 422
8. Hong Kong Government Gazette, October 25, 1939
9. New York Times, Jan 9, 1942, p4
10. Geffard, Sydney (1997). Japan Among the Powers, 1890-1990. Yale University Press. ISBN 978-0-300-06891-7. ISBN 0-300-06891-3.
11. Washington Post, October 12, 1965, pC4
12. Yoshiko's name could possibly be Toshiko. Obituary, New York Times, Oct 12, 1965, p47 The New York Times' obituary referred to Okazaki's daughter as "Toshiko". Other articles refer to her as Yoshiko or Yoshi. See for example New York Times, "FIGURE SKATING; High Hopes in a Tough Season", January 5, 1998. Her mother's name in Japanese is "淑子" which can be read either Yoshiko or Toshiko. See: http://olympico.cocolog-nifty.com/olympic_plus/2005/10/33_45b1.html
13. Sports Reference for Kyoko Ina