Yoshio Kodama

Yoshio Kodama (児玉 誉士夫, Kodama Yoshio, February 18, 1911 – January 17, 1984)[1] was a Japanese right-wing ultranationalist and a prominent figure in the rise of organized crime in Japan. The most famous kuromaku, or behind-the-scenes power broker, of the 20th century, he was active in Japan's political arena and criminal underworld from the 1930s to the 1970s.[2]

Yoshio Kodama
Photo of a young Kodama Yoshio, as shown in the 1953 film A Japanese Tragedy
Born	February 18, 1911
Died	January 17, 1984 (aged 72)
Nationality	Japanese
Occupation	Businessman and organized crime fixer

Early life

Kodama Yoshio (first row, second from right) at a meeting of the ultranationalist Black Ocean Society (Genyōsha) in 1929.

Born in Nihonmatsu, Fukushima, Japan, Kodama lived with relatives in Japanese-occupied Korea early in his life.[3] As a youth, he joined a variety of right-wing ultranationalist groups and was arrested numerous times. In 1929, he joined Bin Akao's "National Foundation Society" (建国会, Kenkokukai) and was arrested for his role in the "Direct Appeal to the Emperor Incident" (天皇直訴事件, Tennō Jikiso Jiken) that occurred that same year. Released from prison, he joined Tatsuo Tsukui's Radical Patriotic Party (急進愛国党, Kyūshin Aikokutō). In 1931, Kodama was imprisoned again for his role in the "Diet Pamphlet Distribution Case" (国会ビラ撒き事件, Kokkai Biramaki Jiken). Released in 1932, Kodama formed his own ultranationalist group called the Independent Youth Society (独立青年社, Dokuritsu Seinensha), which planned to assassinate various Japanese politicians.[4] Kodama's plot was uncovered, and he served a prison term of three and a half years.

Sino-Japanese War

After his release from prison, the Japanese government contracted Kodama to help move supplies for the Japanese war effort out of continental Asia and into Japan. He accomplished this through a network of allies he made during his time working in Korea as a youth. Kodama became involved in the drug trade at this time, moving opiates to Japan along with the supplies he was paid by the government to smuggle. He formed a vast network of allies and built a fortune—more than $175 million U.S.— making him one of the richest men in Asia during this time.

Post-war

Kodama's mugshot from his time in Sugamo Prison

At the end of World War II, Kodama was arrested by the United States as a suspected Class A war criminal.[2]^:63[3] He was held in Sugamo Prison with Ryoichi Sasakawa, where the two formed a long friendship.[2]^:63 Kodama also formed a close relationship with fellow suspected Class-A war criminal (and future prime minister) Nobusuke Kishi.[5] While imprisoned, Kodama wrote Sugamo Diary (a chronicle of his experience in prison) and I Was Defeated (an autobiographical work).[2]^:50

In 1948, the U.S. intelligence community later secured his release in exchange for his aid in fighting communism in Asia.[2] Kodama, being a right-wing ultranationalist, eagerly obliged, using his fortune and network of contacts to quell labor disputes, root out Communist sympathizers and otherwise fight socialist activities in Japan. In 1949, the CIA paid him to smuggle a shipment of tungsten out of China.[6] The shipment never arrived but Kodama kept his money.[6]

In 1960, as now-Prime Minister Nobusuke Kishi's attempts to cement the U.S.-Japan alliance by revising the U.S.-Japan Security Treaty (known as "Anpo" in Japanese) were met with the massive 1960 Anpo Protests, Kishi called upon Kodama to organize right-wing groups to stage counter-protests in favor of the Treaty.[7]

As the protests drastically escalated in June 1960, Kishi called on Kodama again to organize right-wing members and yakuza gangsters as a private police force to keep order in the streets for a planned visit to Japan by U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower to celebrate ratification of the revised treaty.[5] Kodama obliged, preparing a "Welcoming Ike to Japan Mobilization Plan" which he claimed would be able to put nearly 150,000 young rightists on the streets in order to "protect" President Eisenhower from left-wing protesters.[5] Kodama's detailed plan promised to mobilize exactly 146,879 men, whereas Japan's National Police Agency later estimated that he could realistically mobilize at most 120,506.[8] However, due to the violent June 15th Incident, in which female university student Michiko Kanba died, Kishi was forced to cancel Eisenhower's visit and Kodama's force was not needed.

Kodama was also involved in a number of scandals in the post-war era, many of which involved United States businesses and the CIA. Most notable of these was the Lockheed L-1011 sales scandal in the 1970s, which effectively marked the end of his career.[1][2]^:85:93 After the Lockheed scandal, disillusioned ultranationalist Roman Porno film actor Mitsuyasu Maeno attempted to assassinate Kodama by flying a plane into his Tokyo house, kamikaze-style. The attempt failed.[9]

Organized crime

Kodama used his power in the yakuza to suppress anything he deemed the least bit communist or anti-nationalist. In 1947 he ordered the Meiraki-gumi, an affiliated gang, to break up a labour movement at the Hokutan coal mine. He also offered his support to the anti-communist right-wing Liberal Democratic Party.[1][3]

During this period, Kodama used his underworld connections to help unite the various gangs, which had greatly proliferated in the years immediately following World War II. The short-lived Kanto-kai was the most prominent example of these efforts. He also brokered a truce between the Yamaguchi-gumi and the Tosei-kai, headed by his colleague Hisayuki Machii.

Later life

Kodama died in his sleep of a stroke on January 17, 1984.[1]

References

1. Saxon, Wolfgang (January 18, 1984). "YOSHIO KODAMA; WAS RIGHTIST". New York Times. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
2. Kaplan, David E.; Dubro, Alec (2012). Yakuza: Japan's Criminal Underworld. University of California Press. ISBN 978-0520274907.
3. "JAPAN Yoshio KODAMA Rightist Leader" (PDF). Central Intelligence Agency. 2005. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
4. "I Was Defeated. by Yoshio Kodama". The Journal of Asian Studies. 12 (3): 366–368. May 1953. doi:10.2307/2942164. JSTOR 2942164.
5. Kapur, Nick (2018). Japan at the Crossroads: Conflict and Compromise after Anpo. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 250.
6. Frances, Catherine. "Big in Japan: Yoshio Kodama". Metropolis. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
7. Kapur, Nick (2018). Japan at the Crossroads: Conflict and Compromise after Anpo. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. p. 26.
8. Kapur, Nick (2018). Japan at the Crossroads: Conflict and Compromise after Anpo. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. pp. 306n67.
9. "'Banzai!' Porno Actor In Kamikaze Attack On Japanese Right-Winger". Kingsport Times-News. Kingsport, Tennessee: Sandusky Newspapers. Associated Press. 1976-03-24. p. 2–A.