East Asia Anti-Japan Armed FrontTerroristDeath Row InmateHaiku Writer

Masashi Daidōji

Masashi Daidōji, founder of the EAAJAF, was a Japanese terrorist known for the 1974 Mitsubishi bombing, death sentence, and later haiku poetry.

1. Overview

Masashi Daidōji, born on 5 June 1948, was a prominent Japanese far-left militant and terrorist who founded the East Asia Anti-Japan Armed Front (EAAJAF) and developed its core ideology of anti-Japaneseism. His activities culminated in a series of violent acts, most notably the 1974 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries bombing, which resulted in significant casualties. For his role in these bombings, Daidōji was arrested, tried, and sentenced to death. He remained on death row for decades, a unique case in Japan, until his death in 2017. During his prolonged incarceration, he gained recognition for his literary pursuits, particularly his haiku poetry. Daidōji's life and actions remain a controversial subject, sparking debates on terrorism, historical responsibility, and the human cost of radical ideologies.

2. Early life and background

Masashi Daidōji's formative years were marked by experiences that profoundly shaped his political consciousness and worldview, particularly his early exposure to social injustice and political activism.

2.1. Childhood and education

Daidōji was born in the city of Kushiro, Hokkaido, on 5 June 1948. His father was a civil servant who meticulously read newspapers and compiled scrapbooks, which subtly influenced Daidōji's early interest in politics. His family environment further fostered this interest through the involvement of his stepmother's brother, who served as a member of the Hokkaido Prefectural Assembly, and his step-cousin, Masakuni Ōta, who, as a high school student, was at the forefront of the 1960 Anpo protests against the Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security Between the United States and Japan.

Upon entering middle school, Daidōji's school district encompassed an Ainu residential area, leading him to interact frequently with Ainu classmates. Through these interactions, he witnessed firsthand the challenging living conditions and the pervasive employment discrimination faced by the Ainu community, particularly during his third year of middle school. These observations instilled in him a deep sense of social injustice and a burgeoning critical awareness. After graduating from Hokkaido Kushiro Koryo High School, he began participating in various demonstrations.

2.2. Early influences

After high school, Daidōji attempted to enter Osaka University of Foreign Studies but was unsuccessful. He remained in Osaka for approximately a year, living in the Kamagasaki area, a district known for its day laborers. He then moved to Tokyo under the pretext of taking the Waseda University entrance examination, though he ultimately did not sit for it. Instead, he continued his rōnin (pre-university student) life, engaging in various demonstrations alongside his high school friends. During this period, he joined a socialist study group, primarily composed of his high school seniors. This group directed him to enroll in the Department of History within the Faculty of Letters at Hosei University, with the aim of establishing a base for their movement within the university.

3. University years and early activities

Daidōji's time at Hosei University marked a significant period of his ideological development and the formation of the radical groups that would eventually lead to the East Asia Anti-Japan Armed Front.

3.1. University life and student activism

Initially, Daidōji aligned himself with the Japan Socialist Youth League Liberation Faction (Shaseido Kaihōha), which controlled the student council of the Faculty of Letters at Hosei University. However, he soon grew disillusioned with the rigid, top-down command structure characteristic of sectarian movements. This led him to co-found the "Hosei University L-Class Struggle Committee" as a non-sect radical unit with classmates, including Toshiaki Kataoka. Their efforts to recruit students from other departments, such as philosophy and Japanese literature, proved successful, expanding their membership to over a hundred individuals at one point. However, with the "defeat" of the Zenkyoto movement and the 1970 Anpo protests, the committee gradually dissolved.

3.2. Ideological formation and study group organization

Despite dropping out of university, Daidōji was determined to continue the struggle. He formed a new research group with a small number of former L-Class Struggle Committee members, including Kataoka. During this period, he reconnected with and recruited his high school classmate, Ayako Komazawa (later Ayako Daidōji), into the activist movement. They began a relationship, lived together, and eventually married.

A pivotal moment for the group was the "Declaration of Severance" issued on 7 July 1970, by the Overseas Chinese Youth Struggle Committee to various New Left factions. Deeply impacted by this declaration, Daidōji's research group began an intensive study of the "evil deeds" perpetrated by "Japanese imperialism" across Asia. This focused study cultivated an increasingly radical anti-Japanese ideology within the group. Daidōji himself, being from Hokkaido, carried a profound sense of atonement towards the Ainu people, which further fueled his radical convictions. The group's studies specifically investigated how Japanese companies, such as Mitsubishi, had benefited from the use of forced labor in Japanese-occupied Korea.

Driven by their radicalized ideology, the group resolved to transition to urban guerrilla warfare. Even before the formal establishment of the East Asia Anti-Japan Armed Front, they carried out two significant bombings in 1971: the Koa Kannon and Junkyoku Shichishi no Hi Bombing and the Fūsetsu no Gunzō and Hoppō Bunka Kenkyū Shisetsu Bombing.

4. East Asia Anti-Japan Armed Front (EAAJAF)

The East Asia Anti-Japan Armed Front, founded by Masashi Daidōji, was a radical organization characterized by its extreme anti-Japanese ideology and its use of terrorism to target symbols of Japanese imperialism.

The "Ōkami" (Wolf) unit of the East Asia Anti-Japan Armed Front was formally established in late 1972.

4.1. Anti-Japaneseism

Daidōji played a central role in developing the core ideology of the EAAJAF, known as anti-Japaneseism. This ideology asserted that all Japanese people were complicit in Japanese imperialism, regardless of their individual circumstances. Daidōji articulated this belief, stating:
"Japanese people are all people of the main country of Japanese imperialism. We recognize that even those who are exploited by capitalists and oppressed by authority have a structural relationship of being aggressors toward the oppressed peoples of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. Recognizing that Japanese people who thought of themselves as victims are actually aggressors: that is the basis of 'anti-Japan'."

This perspective fundamentally denied any innocence or victimhood for Japanese citizens, viewing them collectively as beneficiaries and perpetrators of imperialist aggression.

4.2. Major activities and incidents

The EAAJAF, under Daidōji's leadership, engaged in a series of violent actions aimed at disrupting and punishing what they perceived as symbols of Japanese imperialism. These included the "Rainbow Operation" (an attempted assassination of Emperor Hirohito with a bomb) and a total of ten corporate bombings.

4.2.1. Serial bombings

The most devastating of the EAAJAF's actions was the 1974 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries bombing. On 30 August 1974, at 12:10 p.m., Daidōji and fellow EAAJAF member Toshiaki Kataoka took a taxi to Marunouchi, the location of the Mitsubishi Heavy Industries headquarters in Tokyo. Upon arrival, Daidōji placed two containers holding a total of 88 lb (40 kg) of explosives in front of the building. The explosives were concealed within a pail can, functioning as a time bomb.

Despite a telephoned warning to the Mitsubishi headquarters staff by EAAJAF member Norio Sasaki, the area was not evacuated in time. The bombs detonated at 12:45 p.m., causing immense destruction. The explosion killed 8 people and wounded nearly 400, inflicting significant human cost and societal trauma. This attack was part of a larger campaign of serial corporate bombings, with the EAAJAF being responsible for a total of ten such incidents, including the Mitsubishi bombing.

5. Arrest, trial, and conviction

The legal consequences of Masashi Daidōji's actions led to his arrest, a prolonged trial process, and ultimately, a death sentence, which remained unexecuted for decades.

5.2. Death sentence and imprisonment

On 24 March 1987, the Supreme Court of Japan sentenced Daidōji and Toshiaki Masunaga to death for their roles in the 1974 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries bombing. Following his conviction, Daidōji filed multiple appeals for a retrial, all of which were ultimately rejected, with his final appeal being dismissed by the Supreme Court in 2008.

Despite the confirmation of his death sentence, Daidōji's execution was never carried out. This unique situation was largely attributed to the unresolved legal status of other EAAJAF members, such as Norio Sasaki and Ayako Daidōji. These individuals had been released and exited Japan through an extraordinary measure by the Japanese government during the Kuala Lumpur incident and the Japan Airlines Flight 472 hijacking orchestrated by the Japanese Red Army. They subsequently joined the Japanese Red Army overseas, and their trials could not be concluded in Japan due to their unapprehended status. Masashi Daidōji notably refused to be released under these circumstances, choosing to remain in prison. Consequently, he remained on death row, effectively serving a life sentence without parole, for over three decades.

6. Literary activities and death

During his long incarceration, Masashi Daidōji developed a notable literary career, particularly as a poet, before his eventual death in prison.

6.1. Incarceration literary activities

While imprisoned, Daidōji began engaging in literary activities. He corresponded and exchanged ideas with prominent intellectuals and writers such as Ryūichi Matsushita, Chinatsu Nakayama, and Yō Hemmi. This interaction fostered his own creative pursuits, leading him to become an accomplished haiku poet. His haiku collection, titled 棺一基Kan IkkiJapanese (A Coffin), received significant recognition, winning the haiku division of the 2013 Japan One-Line Poetry Award.

6.2. Death

Masashi Daidōji died on 24 May 2017, at the age of 68, while incarcerated at the Tokyo Detention House. The cause of his death was multiple myeloma, a form of blood cancer.

7. Assessment and impact

Masashi Daidōji and the East Asia Anti-Japan Armed Front left a complex and controversial legacy, prompting significant criticism and influencing subsequent discussions on radicalism and historical responsibility in Japan.

7.1. Criticism and controversy

Daidōji's ideology of anti-Japaneseism and the EAAJAF's violent actions have drawn widespread condemnation. Critics argue that his assertion of collective Japanese guilt for imperialism was an extreme and unjustified generalization that disregarded individual agency and the diverse experiences of the Japanese populace. The use of terrorism, particularly the 1974 Mitsubishi Heavy Industries bombing, which resulted in the deaths of 8 innocent people and injuries to nearly 400 others, is seen as an indefensible act that inflicted immense human suffering and violated fundamental ethical principles. The bombings sparked intense societal debate regarding the justification of violence for political ends and the moral boundaries of protest. His actions are largely viewed as a tragic example of radicalism leading to destructive outcomes, highlighting the critical importance of non-violent means in addressing historical grievances and social issues.

7.2. Historical impact

The actions and ideas of Masashi Daidōji and the EAAJAF had a discernible impact on subsequent radical movements and political discourse in Japan. While their methods were largely rejected by mainstream society and even by many within the broader New Left, their emphasis on historical responsibility for Japanese imperialism resonated with some segments of the radical left. The EAAJAF's bombings, though condemned, served as a stark reminder of the deep-seated historical grievances that fueled certain extremist groups. Daidōji's prolonged imprisonment without execution, due to the unresolved legal status of other members who had joined the Japanese Red Army abroad, became a unique and debated aspect of Japan's judicial history, drawing attention to the complexities of prosecuting individuals involved in international terrorism. His literary work from prison also sparked discussions among intellectuals about the nature of crime, punishment, and artistic expression.

8. Works

Masashi Daidōji authored several books and collections during his lifetime, primarily during his incarceration:

  • 腹腹時計Harahara TokeiJapanese (Stomach Clock)
  • 明けの星を見上げて-大道寺将司獄中書簡集Ake no Hoshi o Miagete: Daidōji Masashi Gokuchū ShokanshūJapanese (Looking Up at the Morning Star: Masashi Daidōji's Prison Correspondence Collection)
  • 死刑確定中Shikei KakuteichūJapanese (Under Death Sentence)
  • 友へ-大道寺将司句集Tomo e: Daidōji Masashi KushūJapanese (To a Friend: Masashi Daidōji's Haiku Collection)
  • 鴉の目-大道寺将司句集 2Karasu no Me: Daidōji Masashi Kushū 2Japanese (Crow's Eye: Masashi Daidōji's Haiku Collection 2)
  • 棺一基 大道寺将司全句集Kan Ikki: Daidōji Masashi Zen KushūJapanese (A Coffin: Complete Haiku Collection of Masashi Daidōji)
  • 残の月 大道寺将司全句集Zan no Tsuki: Daidōji Masashi Zen KushūJapanese (Remaining Moon: Complete Haiku Collection of Masashi Daidōji)
  • 最終獄中通信Saishū Gokuchū TsūshinJapanese (Final Prison Correspondence)
    • This work was also translated into Korean as 최종옥중통신Choejong Okjung TongsinKorean.