History of Teachers Union Movement in Japan

　　The aim of prewar education in Japan wasto indoctrinate subjects of the Emperor who had absolute authority. As such teachers were commanded to send their children to the battlefield. Teachers were deprived of their dignity as human beings and forced to pursue this aim unconditionally.

　　Even in this dark age, the teachers unionmovement led by advanced groups anddemocratic education movements was unusually developed.

　　On August 15, 1945, the Japanese government led by the Emperor surrendered unconditionally by accepting the Potsdam Declaration. After the defeat of the War, the Japanese teachers union movement attempted to repent for the fact that education had been made a tool for war and fascism.

　　In the aftermath of the War, teachers unions at the prefectural level were formed, which aimed both to reconstruct education and to help people escape from starvation. Those teachers unions set the goals of establishing peace and democracy as their central tasks. During these struggles, the Japan Teachers Union was formed in 1947, uniting a majority of those teachers unions. In the same year, the Constitution of Japan and the Fundamental Law of Education were enacted. Thus the principles of peace and democracy and democratic education based on them were established.

　　But in 1947 when the occupation forces ledby the United States invoked the power to ban general strikes, their policy began to oppress democratization. They deprived government and public workers of the right to strike, dismissed many those workers and forced unions to purge communists and their sympathizers. A great number of militant trade union leaders were ousted from trade unions and the General Council of Trade Unions of Japan (SOHYO) was formed by the direct instruction of the occupation forces.

　　With the founding of the Peoples Republic of China in 1949, the occupation forces began a rapid attack on education with the Report of the U.S.Education Mission in 1950 which recommended making education an instrument to prevent the infiltration of communism.

　　During this time, the unity of teachers wasattacked by skillfully responding to the dissatisfaction of high school teachers toward wages and some high school teachers unions which had drifted from the NIKKYOSO formed the All Japan High School Teachers Union. This Union, together with some independent high school teachers unions, organized the Japan HighSchool Teachers Union (NIKKOKYO) in 1956.

　　Although the memories of horrors of warwere still vivid, Japan was then being transformed into a rear base for the Korean War begun in 1950. Rearmament was going on under the Japan-U.S.Security Treaty which aroused the apprehension of many teachers against the revival of militalistic education. In 1951, under such circumstances, NIKKYOSO adopted the slogan, “Never Send Again Our Children to the Battlefield!”and gradually clarified its position to fight against any reactionary attacks.

　　Successive Liberal Democratic governmentswere quick to target democratic ideals in education. Japanese special envoy Ikedapromised to cultivate “patriotic minds and the spirit of self-defense” among children during a meeting with Robertson in 1954. Freedom of political activities of teachers was restrained by two educational laws in 1954. The method of electing members of boards of education was changed to an appointed system in 1956.

　　Furthermore, the Ministry of Education attempted to introduce a merit rating system through the appointed education board in 1956. The struggle against this system spread like wildfire across the country and lasted for two years. In 1959 and 1960, the struggle against the revision of the Japan-U.S.Security Treaty for the further build-up of the military alliance between the two countries was fought by more than 2,000 local organizations. Although the merit rating system was finally introduced and the Security Treaty was revised, the struggle have made people aware of the united front between political parties, trade unions, democratic organizations and citizens. Through these joint struggles, the mutual distrust between NIKKYOSO and NIKKOKYO was dissolved and a basic agreement was proposed for their future unification in 1959. Ultimately, NIKKOKYO would not adopt the policy on unification because of resistance from within the union. In the end, the unification could not be achieved.

　　With the start of the 1960s, the UnitedStates set about encouraging pro-American, anti-Communist right-wing forces among trade union leaders through the so-called Kennedy and Reischauer policies. These carrot-and-sticktactics finally encouraged NIKKYOSO to adopt in 1961 a policy enforcing its members to support the Japan Socialist Party. These new policies infringed the principle of trade union unity based on common demands. In the same year, those members opposed to the unification of NIKKOKYO and NIKKYOSO drifted away from NIKKOKYO and the majority group who valued the unions unity established the antecedent of the current NIKKOKYO.

　　The newly established democratic NIKKOKYO together with democratic trend under the banner of NIKKYOSO contributed to advance the struggle against the achievement test, the reinforcement of screening of the school textbooks, and other anti-democratic moves by the Ministry of Education.

　　In the beginning of the 1970s, contradictionfor Japanese reactionary forces came to a head with the impasse of high economic growth policy, the so-called “oil shock” and the expansion and coordination of democratic forces at the local level. Faced with these circumstances, the Liberal Democratic Party and financial circles mounted an all-out reactionary attack, claiming this was a final push for postwar democracy. They did their utmost to divide and seduce opposition parties and the trade unions.

　　In response to this move, the“Socialist andKomei (religious party) Agreement”for their future administration was established in January 1980 based on the exclusion of the Japan Communist Party was formed. The Agreement was brought into the trade unions by the earlier policy to support the Japan Socialist Party. From that time onward, the right-wing political and trade union shift began. Finally, the Japan Confederation of Trade Unions (RENGO) was formed which excluded militant trade unions who defended the interests of workers.

　　Trampling on the wills of a number of itsmembers, NIKKYOSO also surrendered to RENGO and at last became a “company union” which approved reactionary educational policies.

　　As a result, the All Japan Council of Teachers and Staff Union (former ZENKYO) was formed in November 1989, uniting all those teachers unions at the prefectural level which resolved to defend the progressive tradition of the teachers union movement in Japan. In April 1991, a larger national Teachers Union, the All Japan Teachers and Staff Union was inaugurated by the unification of the former ZENKYO and the Japan Senior High School Teachers and Staff Union (NIKKOKYO), both of which were under the banner of a militant trade union center, National Confederation of Trade Unions (ZENROREN).

　　A Base for the Teachers Union Movement
　　　- A New Building, “Educas Tokyo”-

　　At the Extraordinary Congress convened in February, 1993, the construction of a new building for the secretariats of ZENKYO and its affiliates in Tokyo was proposed. Through careful examination at the ad. hoc. Committee on Construction, a site for the building was acquired in the center of Tokyo close to the Houses of Parliament and government offices and construction started in April 1996. After one year and two months construction work, the eight story building including basement (total amount of floor space, 3354.25 square meters) was completed. In July 1997, a ceremony to celeberate the completion was held with a number of guests and persons concerned. The construction fund was borrowed entirely from affiliated organizations.

　　In the building, there is a Concert Hall for about 200 persons, two meeting rooms and a library open to the public as well as the secretariats and meeting rooms of respective unions and research institutes.

　　Using“Educas Tokyo”as a base for unityand solidarity is expected to further develop the activities and movements of ZENKYO.

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