Akira Iwai

Japanese: 岩井章 - いわいあきら

Born: April 25, 1922 in Matsumoto, Nagano
[Died] February 18, 1997. Labor activist in Atami, Shizuoka. Immediately after graduating from high school, he joined the Japanese National Railways, and became an engineer, starting as an assistant engineer. During World War II, he served in the military, and was demobilized from China. He threw himself into the labor movement, and distinguished himself in the Japanese National Railways Workers' Union, becoming head of the joint struggle department of the National Railways Workers' Union in 1950. In 1951, he became head of the planning department of the same union, and led the year-end struggles in 1952 and 1953, after which he was fired in 1954. During this time, he was active both inside and outside the union on a political line centered on the peace debate, and supported the "Three Principles of Peace" of the left wing of the Socialist Party. At the National Railways Workers' Union convention in June 1951, he finally rejected the right-wing line of Hoshika Kaname and others, and joined forces with Takagi Fumihiko of the All Japan Post and Communications Workers' Union and Hiragaki Miyoshi of the Japan Teachers' Union, becoming a driving force in the leftward shift of the General Council of Japanese Trade Unions (Sohyo). In 1955, he prevented Takano Minoru from being re-elected for a fifth term, and became Secretary General of Sohyo. For 15 years, until 1970, he dominated the labor world in partnership with Chairman Ota Kaoru (1958-66). His accomplishments include the establishment of the Spring Offensive, leadership of the 1960 Security Treaty and Miike struggles, and the maintenance of the Socialist Party-Sohyo bloc. He was awarded the Lenin Peace Prize in 1970. He is the author of "Together with Sohyo."

Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia About Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia Information

Japanese:

[生]1922.4.25. 長野，松本
[没]1997.2.18. 静岡，熱海
労働運動家。高等小学校を出てすぐ国鉄に入り，機関助手から機関士となる。第2次世界大戦中，兵役に服し，中国から復員。労働運動に身を投じ，国鉄労働組合で頭角を現し，1950年国労本部共闘部長。 51年同企画部長となり，52年，53年の年末闘争を指導し，54年解雇処分を受けた。この間，講和論争を中心とする政治路線をめぐり組合の内外で活躍し，社会党左派の「平和三原則」を支持した。 1951年6月の国労大会で，ついに星加要らの右派路線を退け，全逓信労働組合の宝樹文彦，日本教職員組合の平垣美代司と結んで，日本労働組合総評議会 (総評) の左旋回の推進力となった。 55年高野実の5選を阻止して，総評事務局長に就任。以来 70年まで 15年間，太田薫議長 (1958～66) とのコンビで労働界に君臨した。春闘方式の定着，六十年安保，三池闘争の指導，社会党＝総評ブロックの堅持などその足跡は大きい。なお，70年レーニン平和賞を受賞。著書『総評とともに』がある。

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