Free Newspaper - Jiyu Shinbun

This was the daily organ of the Liberal Party, first published in Tokyo on June 25, 1882 (Meiji 15). Itagaki Taisuke was the president, and the editorials were written by leading civil rights advocates of the time, such as Baba Tatsui, Nakae Chomin, Tanaka Kozo, Taguchi Ukichi, and Suehiro Shigeyasu (Tetsucho). Shimamoto Nakamichi (chief editor), Ueki Emori, Nishikawa Tsutetsu, and Kurihara Ryoichi were among the members of the newspaper. They criticized the government with their elegant arguments on freedom and civil rights, while also attacking the Progressive Party as a false party and calling for its eradication. However, an internal dispute over the source of Itagaki's travel expenses led to Taguchi, Suehiro, Baba, and then Nakae resigning in the autumn of the same year, and Furusawa Shigeru became editor-in-chief. However, the paper's popularity did not grow due to the government's crackdown on Democratic Party newspapers, and with the dissolution of the Liberal Party in October 1984, the paper lost its raison d'être as an organ newspaper, and it submitted a notice of closure on March 15, 1985. It was later revived under President Itagaki on October 20, 1990, but ceased publication on March 31 the following year. It was first published on April 22 as "Jiyuu" and was renamed "Jiyuu Shimbun" on July 1, 1993, becoming the organ newspaper of the Liberal Party, which had renamed itself the Rikken Liberal Party, but in February 1995 it severed its ties with the party, and in January 1997 it was renamed "Meiji Shimbun."

[Akihiko Sunohara]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

1882年（明治15）6月25日に東京で創刊された自由党の日刊機関紙。板垣退助(たいすけ)を社長に、馬場辰猪(たつい)、中江兆民、田中耕造、田口卯吉(うきち)、末広重恭(しげやす)（鉄腸）ら当代一流の民権論者が社説を担当、嶋本仲道(しまもとなかみち)（主幹）、植木枝盛(えもり)、西河通徹(つうてつ)、栗原亮一(りょういち)らが在社、格調の高い自由民権論で政府を批判すると同時に、改進党を偽党と攻撃、その撲滅を唱えた。しかし板垣の洋行費の出所をめぐる党内紛議で、同年秋、田口、末広、馬場、ついで中江が退社、古沢滋(しげる)が主幹となったが、政府の民党系紙弾圧などもあって紙勢は伸びず、84年10月自由党も解体したため、機関紙としての存在意義を失い、85年3月15日廃刊届を出した。その後90年10月20日板垣社長の下で再興されたが、翌年3月31日廃刊。4月22日『自由』として発刊、93年7月1日『自由新聞』と改題、立憲自由党を改称した自由党の機関紙となったが、95年2月、党との関係を絶ち、97年1月『明治新聞』と改題された。

［春原昭彦］

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