One week later, the new premier, Shidehara Kijūrō, met MacArthur for the first time and received a succinct order that made the previous directive seem mild. In addition to the “liberalization of the constitution,” the government was commanded to extend the franchise to women, promote labor unionization, open schools to more liberal education, democratize the economy by revising “monopolistic industrial controls,” and in general eliminate all despotic vestiges in society. Suddenly, abstract statements about promoting democracy had become exceedingly specific.
