Yoshio Kodama

Yoshio Kodama (児玉 誉士夫, Kodama Yoshio, February 18, 1911 – January 17, 1984)[1] was 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 1950s to the early 1970s.[2]

Tōyama Mitsuru (center), Kodama Yoshio (first row, second from right) on a meeting of the Black Ocean Society (Genyōsha)
Kodama Yoshio as portrayed in the 1946 movie A Japanese Tragedy

Early life

Born in Nihonmatsu, Japan, Kodama lived with relatives in Japanese-occupied Korea early in his life,[3] and during that time formed an ultranationalist group with the intent to assassinate various Japanese politicians.[4] He was caught in 1932 and 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

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 While imprisoned, he wrote Sugamo Diary (a chronicle of his experience in prison) and I Was Defeated (an autobiographical work).[2]:50

Post-war political efforts
Part of the Politics and elections and Politics series on
Neo-fascism
 Politics portal

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.[5] The shipment never arrived but Kodama kept his money.[5]

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.

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.[6]

Later life

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

gollark: <@111608748027445248> There probably are perfectly good compression algorithms you can use.
gollark: I think this is that CC Tweaked bug.
gollark: Maybe.
gollark: It would be smarter to just simulate it on both sides, send player movements, and sync them up occasionally.
gollark: Why do you *want* that?!

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. Frances, Catherine. "Big in Japan: Yoshio Kodama". Metropolis. Retrieved December 8, 2014.
  6. "'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.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.