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Tsutomu Hata

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Tsutomu Hata
羽田 孜
Official portrait, 1994
Prime Minister of Japan
In office
28 April 1994 – 30 June 1994
MonarchAkihito
Preceded byMorihiro Hosokawa
Succeeded byTomiichi Murayama
Deputy Prime Minister of Japan
In office
9 August 1993 – 28 April 1994
Prime MinisterMorihiro Hosokawa
Preceded byMasaharu Gotoda
Succeeded byYohei Kono
Minister of Foreign Affairs
In office
9 August 1993 – 28 April 1994
Prime MinisterMorihiro Hosokawa
Preceded byKabun Muto
Succeeded byKoji Kakizawa
Minister of Finance
In office
5 November 1991 – 12 December 1992
Prime MinisterKiichi Miyazawa
Preceded byToshiki Kaifu (acting)
Succeeded byYoshiro Hayashi
Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
In office
27 December 1988 – 3 June 1989
Prime MinisterNoboru Takeshita
Preceded byTakashi Sato
Succeeded byHisao Horinouchi
In office
28 December 1985 – 22 July 1986
Prime MinisterYasuhiro Nakasone
Preceded byMoriyoshi Sato
Succeeded byMutsuki Kato
Member of the House of Representatives
In office
27 December 1969 – 16 December 2012
Preceded byMulti-member district
Succeeded byYoshiyuki Terashima
ConstituencyNagano 2nd (1969–1996)
Nagano 3rd (1996–2012)
Personal details
Born(1935-08-24)24 August 1935
Tokyo, Empire of Japan
Died28 August 2017(2017-08-28) (aged 82)
Tokyo, Japan
Political partyDemocratic (2016) (2016–2017)
Other political
affiliations
LDP (1969–1992)
Renewal (1992–1994)
NFP (1994–1996)
Sun (1996–1998)
GGP (1998-1998)
DPJ (1998–2016)
SpouseAyako Hata
ChildrenYuichiro Hata
Alma materSeijo University
Signature

Tsutomu Hata (羽田 孜, Hata Tsutomu, 24 August 1935 – 28 August 2017) was a Japanese politician who briefly served as prime minister of Japan in 1994.

Born in Tokyo, Hata graduated from Seijo University and was first elected to the National Diet in 1969. He rose to become a key member of the Liberal Democratic Party's Tanaka/Takeshita faction, and served as agriculture, forests, and fisheries minister in the 1980s and finance minister from 1991 to 1992. After Keizō Obuchi took over the faction, Hata formed the Japan Renewal Party in 1993, which joined in the anti-LDP coalition which formed Morihiro Hosokawa's government. Hata served as foreign minister, then replaced Hosokawa as prime minister when he resigned. However, the Japan Socialist Party soon left the coalition, causing it to collapse. Hata lost leadership of his party when it merged with the New Frontier Party, then formed his own Sun Party, which in turn merged with the Good Governance Party then Democratic Party in 1998. Hata became secretary-general of the party, and remained one of its senior advisors until his death.

Early years

Hata was born in Tokyo on 24 August 1935,[1] a son of the Liberal Democratic Party Member of Parliament Bushiro Hata. Hata graduated from Seijo University and was employed by the Odakyu bus company from 1958 to 1969.

Political career

with the Ministers of Hata Government (at the Prime Minister's Official Residence on April 28, 1994)
with Jacques Delors (in May, 1994)

In 1969, Hata entered the House of Representatives of Japan, representing Nagano Prefecture as a member of the Liberal Democratic Party. He rose to become a top lieutenant in the Tanaka/Takeshita faction in the 1980s.

In 1991, he served as Minister of Finance under Kiichi Miyazawa. He left the LDP in 1993 to found the Japan Renewal Party with longtime LDP ally Ichirō Ozawa, which became part of Morihiro Hosokawa's anti-LDP coalition government later that year. Hata served as foreign minister in the Hosokawa cabinet.

On 28 April 1994, Hosokawa resigned and Hata became prime minister. However, the Japan Socialist Party had recently left the coalition, destroying its majority in the Diet. Rather than face a vote of no confidence, Hata elected to resign in June, allowing SDP leader Tomiichi Murayama to take over the position on 30 June.

A number of progressive reforms were introduced during Hata's tenure as prime minister. A law passed on 17 June 1994 to amend the Law concerning Stabilization of Employment for Older Persons aimed to encourage employers to plan continuous employment for older employees after the age of 60, as well as to prohibit employers from setting a compulsory retirement age lower than 60 and appoint public corporations as centres "for the practical use of older workers' experience." On 22 June 1994, the Support Centre for Employment of the Disabled was established by law to provide practical advice, vocational training, and information to disabled workers and employers. A health insurance amendment law passed on 29 June 1994 exempted employees from the requirement to pay National Health Insurance fees during child-care leave.[2]

After the Shinseito merged into the Shinshinto in late 1994, Hata contested the leadership against Ichiro Ozawa. After losing this contest, he and twelve other Diet members formed the splinter Sun Party (太陽党 Taiyōtō). The Sun Party in January 1998 became a part of the Good Governance Party which itself was subsumed by the Democratic Party of Japan in April 1998.

Personal life and death

Hata's son, Yuichiro (1967–2020), was a member of the House of Councillors of Japan. He was appointed the Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism on 4 June 2012.[3] Tsutomu "Too Hot" Hata is recognized as the godfather of the Hacket, a short sleeve blazer which he also coined as an "E-cool suit". Hata was ahead of his time in this regard and concern for sensible sustainable fashion.[4]

Hata died of natural causes on 28 August 2017 in Tokyo, four days after his 82nd birthday.[5]

Honours

References

  1. ^ Sanger, David (April 23, 1994). "Man in the News; Cautious Leader in Japan: Tsutomu Hata". The New York Times. Retrieved November 18, 2016.
  2. ^ "Results list of Browse by country – NATLEX".
  3. ^ Prime Minister of Japan and His Cabinet website The Cabinet – Yuichiro Hata Retrieved on 15 August 2012
  4. ^ Japanese Men Dress Down To Cut Summer's Energy Costs
  5. ^ "Former Prime Minister Tsutomu Hata dies at 82". The Japan Times. 28 August 2017. Retrieved 28 August 2017.
  6. ^ The Japan Times "Foreign dignitaries honored with spring decorations," 10 May 2013
  7. ^ "ENTIDADES ESTRANGEIRAS AGRACIADAS COM ORDENS PORTUGUESAS – Página Oficial das Ordens Honoríficas Portuguesas". www.ordens.presidencia.pt. Retrieved 2019-08-15.

Further reading

Political offices
Preceded by Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
1985–1986
Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries
1988–1989
Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of Finance
1991–1992
Succeeded by
Preceded by Minister of Foreign Affairs
1993–1994
Succeeded by
Preceded by Deputy Prime Minister of Japan
1993–1994
Succeeded by
Preceded by Prime Minister of Japan
1994
Succeeded by