Geography Reference
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because the one in existence is of a di
erent religion (Shinto) to that of Soka
Gakkai. However, there is no such opinion to be found in Soka Gakkai; only
the opinion of total separation of religion and state with no state sanction
given to any religion, including its own.
Moreover, Komeito supporters told me that since the 1970s Komeito had
made various e
orts to mend Sino-Japanese relations, starting with Ikeda, who
called for normalisation of ties between China and Japan as early as 1968.
His meeting with the Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai in 1974 is something fre-
quently reiterated in Soka Gakkai literature, where friendship and cultural
exchanges with Chinese delegates and students have consistently been pro-
moted over the years by Soka University. Perhaps at least partly because of that,
Ikeda has received honorary doctorates from universities throughout China,
and there are even research institutions dedicated to studying his writings. 6
You can also hear Soka Gakkai members talk about their cultural indebted-
ness to China, a view promoted by Ikeda. Yet, Komeito turned away from
favouring an abrogation of the US
Japan Security Treaty (Anpo) towards
supporting it in the 1980s. Toyama (in conversation, 05/12/2003) explained
that many left-wing intellectuals saw this as an ideological betrayal, and he
believes that many editors-in-chief from that generation still remember this,
which for him is why the media continues to ignore
-
'
the good things Komeito
'
is trying to do
. Just as the left may view Komeito as a traitor, the LDP also
does not easily accept Komeito (although this was clearly changing in the
2009 and 2010 elections). Many conservative politicians see Komeito/Soka
Gakkai as being a thorn in the side on their version of Japan
'
s military past,
in which Japan is portrayed as
, rather than aggressor, the view
Soka Gakkai holds. Soka Gakkai is often the target of right-wing extremist
groups. When Komeito
'
liberator
'
first joined in a coalition with the LDP, the pressure
from conservative politicians to
find reasons to discontinue its relationship
with Komeito was apparently enormous, making it very di
cult in those
early days to voice their opinion directly (Komeito politician, personal com-
munication). In 2004, after
five years in the coalition, the increasing electoral
dependence of the LDP on Soka Gakkai votes had made Komeito somewhat
more outspoken, but many supporters still felt that they had to sometimes
second-guess what Komeito politicians were really thinking.
Perhaps there was something in what Toyama said concerning the media,
that editorial opinion would begin to change once the old editors-in-chief
who remembered the lost battles over the Security Treaty with the USA
began retiring. The media portrayal of Soka Gakkai certainly became more
accepting with, for example, The Japan Times featuring a biweekly article by
Ikeda during 2006. By then Soka Gakkai had begun to be described as an
organisation working for peace, 7 which contrasted with the earlier media
image of a potentially dangerous cult juxtaposed on the level of Aum Shinri-
kyo (Kisala 1997; Yuki 1997). Hardacre (2005) also discussed how Komeito is
likely to have been the only real obstacle to the LDP
s drive for revising
Article 9. While the LDP, Komeito and the main opposition party, Minshut - ,
'
 
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