Japanese Socialists in 1918—1923: Between Reformism, Bolshevism and Anarchism

The five years after the end of World War I turned out to be a key period in the history of the socialist movement in Japan, in many ways predetermining further directions in its development. After recovering from the defeat in 1911 and the subsequent decline in the so-called “winter period”, the socialists discovered syndicalist methods of action and began actively to work in the trade union movement. After 1918, they faced a difficult choice of path, and after initial attempts to create a common “Socialist League”, this led to a demarcation between the adherents of different socialist trends. Some of the socialists entered into an alliance with the leaders of the reformist trade unions and moved to the position of social democracy. Others preferred to choose the ideas and tactics of anarchism and anarcho-syndicalism. Finally, still others, under the influence of the Communist International and its work with the Japanese socialists, organized the Japanese Communist Party. Amidst the repression by the authorities, a stubborn struggle for influence in the labor movement flared up between supporters of all three trends. After 1923, Japanese socialism experienced a final split, and subsequently each of the three currents created their own political and trade union associations.