The Democratisation of Japan after World War II

Seminar paper from the year 2005 in the subject Politics - International Politics - Region: Far East, grade: A (1,5), Hong Kong Baptist Universitiy, course: Democratisation in East and Southeast Asia, 5 entries in the bibliography, language: English, abstract: The purpose of this paper is to examine the democratisation of Japan after the Second World War. This is a particularly interesting subject, as Japan did not only democratise but also rose to become one of the most powerful economic nations on earth. I will argue that this is partly due to the American occupation that helped Japan to a privileged partnership with their former occupants - the worlds most powerful economy. Thus, my focus will be on the American influence on the democratisation process in Japan. I will, however, first provide a brief description of the time that preceded the democratisation process and then examine to the extent which the American occupants have shaped the Japanese post-war reconstruction. Finally, the reasons for the American withdrawal will be scrutinised.