Tomiichi Murayama
| Tomiichi Murayama | |
|---|---|
| 村山 富市 | |
Tomiichi Murayama
|
|
| 52nd Prime Minister of Japan | |
|
In office 30 June 1994 – 11 January 1996 |
|
| Monarch | Akihito |
| Preceded by | Tsutomu Hata |
| Succeeded by | Ryutaro Hashimoto |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
3 March 1924 Ōita, Ōita, Japan |
| Political party |
Social Democratic Party (1996-present) Socialist Party of Japan (until 1996) |
| Spouse(s) | Yoshie Murayama |
| Alma mater | Meiji University |
| Signature |  |
Tomiichi Murayama (村山 富市 Murayama Tomiichi?, born 3 March 1924) is a retired Japanese politician who served as the 81st Prime Minister of Japan from 30 June 1994 to 11 January 1996. He was the head of the Social Democratic Party of Japan (until 1996, the Japanese Socialist Party) and the first socialist prime minister in nearly fifty years. He is most remembered today for his speech "On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the war's end", in which he publicly apologised for Imperial Japanese atrocities committed during World War II.
Murayama was born in Ōita Prefecture on 3 March 1924; his father was a fisherman. He entered Meiji University in 1943 as a philosophy student, but was mobilised in 1944 and assigned to work in the Ishikawajima shipyards. Later that year, he was drafted into the Imperial Army and assigned to the 72nd Infantry of the 23rd Brigade of the 23rd Division as a private second class. He was demobilised following Japan's surrender with the rank of officer candidate.
Murayama was appointed secretary of the labor union in his company and entered the Japan Socialist Party, which his union supported. He began his political career as a member of the Ōita city council in 1955 and went on to serve three terms. In 1963 his supporters urged him to be a candidate for the Ōita prefectural assembly. He was elected three times successively. In 1972 he was elected to the House of Representatives of Japan.
...
Wikipedia