Because of a slogan, he became the last person in Japan to commit lese majeste.

Japan’s surrender, the end of World War II, and the arrival of the US military not only gave Japanese women opportunities to make money, but also brought about profound social changes. One of them was that the May Day rally, which had been interrupted by the militarists, was resumed. But something big soon happened.

Amid the food crisis, on International Labor Day in 1946, hundreds of thousands of Japanese gathered in front of the Imperial Palace to demand a solution to the food problem. Although I was hungry, I did have a festive atmosphere, because I no longer could only say a few prescribed words like before, but I seemed to be able to speak freely. No, a guy named Matsushima Matsutaro put up a slogan with the words on the front:

Edict: The national system can be maintained. I will be fed all day long, but you people will die of hunger. Admire this. This is of course false and intended to be ironic. There are also words on the back of the sign, full of anger: Why do we have to starve no matter how hard we work? The answer is:

Emperor Hirohito! The book "Embracing Defeat" commented that this incident showed the people's healthy iconoclastic spirit after decades of emperor-centered ideological rule. But in June, Matsushima was actually arrested by Shigeru Yoshida on the charge of lese majeste which was commonly used before the war. On June 22, Songdao was prosecuted. But by October, the charge was changed to reputational damage. Apparently Allied Command was behind this. Because damaging reputation is more of a crime in the modern sense.

On November 2, he was sentenced to eight months in prison, but was released due to the promulgation of the new constitution and the emperor's pardon on November 3. But Songdao doesn't recognize the pardon. I just don't like you. If I accept the pardon, doesn't it mean that I acknowledge you? So he appealed, and as a result, he was found guilty of the crime of disrespect, but he was exempted from execution. Still dissatisfied, he appealed to the Supreme Court, which was dismissed in May 1948. Matsushima became famous around the world the moment he raised the slogan, but he also became the last person in Japan to be found guilty of lese majeste. (The photos in this article are from the Internet. If there is any infringement, please contact us to delete them)