Liberal Democratic Party Member of the House of Councillors, Toshihide Mizuochi

Aiming to build a permanently peaceful society
~With a mission to prevent the memory of war from fading and to pass on the preciousness of peace~

■ Profile

Born in Tokamachi City, Niigata Prefecture in 1943. Orphan of a war dead.
Graduated from Niigata Commercial High School and works at Tokiwa Kosan Co., Ltd. in Iwaki City, Fukushima Prefecture.
In 1971, he began working for the Japan War-Bereaved Families Association. After serving as Secretary General and Executive Director, he ran for the House of Councillors election in 2004 as a representative of war-bereaved families, was elected for the first time, and is currently serving his third term.
He has served as Parliamentary Vice-Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, Vice-Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, and Chairman of the House of Councillors' Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology Committee. He currently serves as Chairman of the House of Councillors' Rules and Administration Committee, Chairman of the Japan War-Bereaved Families Association, and Representative of Yasukuni Shrine.

Liberal Democratic Party member of the House of Councillors, Mizuochi Toshiaki, was born during wartime, lost his father in the war when he was two and a half years old, and later experienced the difficult postwar reconstruction period as a bereaved family member of a war dead. We explored the reasons why he went on to work for the Japan War-Bereaved Families Association and enter politics after experiencing the harsh conditions of his childhood. What is necessary to achieve Mizuochi's goal of "building a society of lasting peace"?

■ The war that took away ordinary happiness

I grew up in a heavy snow area in Niigata Prefecture. My family consisted of five people: my parents, older brother, and older sister. We were what you might call "three-tan" farmers, and although we weren't wealthy, we lived happy lives.
However, as the war situation worsened, my father was drafted with just a red paper and assigned to the Kamimachi Naval Air Corps (now Yamagata Airport) as a flight mechanic.On August 9, 1945, just six days before the end of the war, he was killed in action in a bombing.
The days that followed were beyond description. Having lost our family's breadwinner, my mother worked like a horse, farming before dawn, helping with construction projects during the day, and doing side jobs at night. We barely made ends meet. However, our finances were still tight, and my older brother and sister, who were much older than me, went out to work after graduating from junior high school. One of the sad childhood memories I still recall is one related to white rice. My hometown is a producer of Uonuma Koshihikari rice, and our family's rice fields produced 20 bales of rice. However, we sold that rice as a valuable source of cash income, so we only had white rice about once a week. We usually ate unpalatable dumplings made from the leftover rice polishing residue. This, combined with the loneliness of my father's absence, made me feel miserable. Because of this, I often boasted to the neighbors about the days when I could eat white rice, and they still laugh at me.

■ Supported by my family and those around me, I worked for the Japan War-Bereaved Families Association

In the midst of our difficult life, I began to strongly feel that I wanted to start working as soon as possible and help my mother. Therefore, I had planned to start working immediately after graduating from junior high school, but my brother told me, "Education will become more important from now on. You should graduate from high school," so I decided to go on to a commercial high school.
My family worked hard to support me, but it was never enough, so I went to school while working. I worked and studied hard, with the sole desire to find a good job to make things easier for my mother, and I have no memories of enjoying my youth to the fullest.
Then, finally, it was time to look for work. During the postwar economic boom, middle and high school students were touted as "golden eggs." While everyone around me was getting jobs, I was puzzled by the fact that I was the only one who hadn't. When I asked my teacher about it, I found out that it was because I was born to a single parent.
It would be unthinkable now, but in those days, children from families without both parents could not be hired because they could not be trusted. My father was sent to the battlefield on orders from the government for the sake of his country, and I lost him in the war, so society looked down on me. I still cannot forget the frustration, emptiness, and anger I felt at that time.
Just when I was in despair, an official from the local bereaved families' association told me about a recruitment drive for staff at Kudan Kaikan, run by the Japan Bereaved Families Association, targeting children of war dead. Desperate for help, I took the exam, and when I passed, my family cried tears of joy.
Kudan Kaikan operated wedding halls, accommodation, and banquet halls, and at the time, the first baby boom generation was reaching marriageable age, with approximately 2400 weddings being held annually, making it a truly dizzyingly busy time.However, I was happy to be able to work with colleagues who had experienced the same situation as me, having lost their fathers in the war, and above all, to be able to send money to my mother, who had suffered so much by working, so I worked enthusiastically.

■ "Never let war happen again" - Taking to national politics to convey the voices of bereaved families

After working at Kudan Kaikan, I was assigned to the Japan War-Bereaved Families Association Secretariat. The most unforgettable experience I had while working there was collecting the remains of war dead. In particular, the memory of my time on Saipan in 1974 is still burned into my mind.
Saipan is a coral island with good drainage, so remains were left almost intact for nearly 30 years after the end of the war, at the base of palm trees, in caves, on the seashore, etc. "Did the war dead die in vain?" In front of the countless remains, sadness turned to anger.
The collection of remains from former battlefields overseas began in 1952, but did not become fully operational until 1973. However, progress was so slow that the conclusion was reached that the only solution was to use political power.
Since its founding, the Japan War-Bereaved Families Association has sent a representative to the Diet to convey the voices of bereaved families to national politics. I was asked to run in the 16 House of Councillors election when I was serving as Executive Director. I firmly declined, but then-Vice Chairman and my political mentor, former House of Representatives member Makoto Koga, convinced me that I was the right candidate, as I had been listening closely to the voices of bereaved families in the secretariat. So I ran for the House of Councillors election (proportional representation), and thanks to the warm support of bereaved families across the country, I was elected.
Immediately after being elected, I drafted and passed a bill that made it the nation's responsibility to collect remains, so that the 60th anniversary of the end of the war could be marked and the aging bereaved families could return to their homeland while they were still healthy.
However, of the 240 million war dead who died overseas, the remains of over 112 million still remain overseas. We will continue to work hard to collect the remains so that we can return as many of them as possible to Japan as soon as possible.

■ To honor the souls of the 310 million war dead

I have been able to get to where I am today thanks to the support of many people. However, at each turning point in my life, the thought that crossed my mind was, "I wish my father were here."
After the war, our country was reduced to burnt ruins, and not only the families of the war dead but all citizens suffered from poverty and hunger. In the midst of this, those who survived worked desperately to protect the society that had been built by the precious lives of the 310 million people who died in the war, hoping for the peace of our country and the happiness of their families, and as a result, we have been able to build the peaceful and prosperous society we have today.
However, more than 75 years have passed since the end of the war, and with 90% of the population born after the war, memories of the war are fading from memory. Many of the 3.1 million people who lost their lives in the last war were young people in their teens and twenties, including students. It goes without saying that each and every one of them had dreams and hopes they wanted to fulfill. That is why it is our social responsibility as the surviving families of the war dead, who experienced firsthand the horrors of war and the value of peace, to continue to convey to future generations that "war must never be repeated" and contribute to building a world of lasting peace. It is my mission and wish to convey this voice to national politics.

■ Politics that lives up to the trust of the people

Student life amid the COVID-19 pandemic is surely full of hardships and anxieties. First-year university students, even after enrolling, are faced with online classes and no opportunity to meet with their teachers or friends. Second- and third-year students are overwhelmed by the rapid changes in society, and fourth-year students are feeling the strain of not being able to even look for jobs.
In order to confront an unknown virus, the government has had to gather the opinions of various experts from the medical, business, and other fields and make careful decisions, which gives the impression of lacking swiftness. In addition, I feel ashamed of the careless words and actions of members of the Diet.
That is why, as a member of the Diet, I would like to offer my sincere apologies to all students. Thanks to the efforts of medical professionals and the public, Japan has managed to keep the number of infections and deaths low compared to other countries, but we cannot allow for complacency regarding the spread of mutant viruses. To repay your dedication, I will continue to provide detailed measures and support to protect "lives and livelihoods," placing first priority on politics that meets the public's trust.
In this situation, I hope that by learning about my experiences as a war orphan, students will think about the value of a peaceful society that we take for granted, be grateful for their encounters with their families and the people around them, cherish the time they have been given, and approach everything with a positive attitude.

Interview with Student Newspaper Online on February 15, 2021 by Kokoro Sato, a first-year student at Tsuda University