VIC101 Conflict Theory - Can Democracy be exported? Iraq vs.

Japan
Point 1: History of Japan and Iraq
Japan:

- After the Opium wars in the 19th century and the Perry expedition in 1854 Japan sought to modernize
itself to avoid the fate of many other asian nations (i.e., China,Vietnam)
- during the Meiji restoration Japan had adopted a new constitution after they had sponsored many
missions to Western Capitals to copy Western education, banking, education, government etc
- However this western constitution was held back by the belief that the emperor was sacred and
inviolable but it was still more progressive than some European constitutions at the time
- The need to modernize came from the Japanese people not from an outside force
- The idea of being dominated by the West like so many other Asian nations spurred the Japanese to
transform from a feudal society to an industrialized empire in less than 70 years
- The desire was born from within the society not external
- By the early 20th century Japan was seen as an equal trading partner and was respected as a military
and commercial power
- First asian nation to be treated as an equal by Western powers such as Britain and the United States
- New constitution established a system of political parties and until the truly democratic constitution in
1952 it functioned essentially as a parliamentary system with voting rights being established and
suffrage for all males over 25 was achieved in 1925. Voting was no longer granted to just the wealthy
- Labour unions were formed and images of liberalist democracy were forming despite the country
becoming fascist in the 30s
- Education was granted to both sexes and by the 20s enrolment 95% of both boy and girls were enrolled
in Japanese public school
- Japan was no stranger to democracy and liberal ideas of big government and political parties
- After Japan surrendered and concluded the WWII , Mcarthur established a new constitution in Japan
and all the infrastructure and institutions that needed to exist to implement a democracy (labour unions,
education system, no stranger to parliament and voting) did exist
- As well as Japan had already established a universal national and ethnic identity within the country
Iraq:

- Part of the Ottoman Empire for four centuries Iraq never really established a sense of nationhood, as it
-

was constantly part of a larger entity the Ottoman Empire

After the defeat and dissolution of the Ottoman Empire following the closure of the First World War,
Iraq was one of the many nations carved out of the old Empire by the British
Composed of Shiite and Sunni Muslims as well as a significant population of Kurds Iraq was in all
proposes an artificially formed country not a naturally formed one like Japan or England.
Too many outside influences had prevented any significant ethnic unity from appearing in Iraq
Borders of the country do not relate to loyalties of the people within those borders
Everyone in Japan is more or less Japanese and loyal to Japan whereas everyone in Iraq is not the same
(Shiite, Sunni, or Kurd) and do not necessarily feel significant if any loyalty to Iraq compared to their
own ethnic group

- History of oppression that Iraq endured under the Ottoman Empire and then under Saddam who
-

oppressed the Kurdish population killing 100-200,000 Kurds, launched a war with Iran as well as
crushing a Shiite revolt in which tens of thousands were killed and millions displaced
Real animosity between ethnic groups in Iraq
Also the religious battleground between the two major sects of Islam
Iran ruled by the Sunni elite to the east and Saudi Arabia the strictest adherents to Sunni Islam to the
west
Iraq is the dividing line between these two groups and will continue to be caught in the crossfire of this
religious conflict
Women are unequal in the country and Iraq does not have nearly as strong a school system as Japan as
Not used to democracy and voting as its people have been exposed to empire then dictatorship

Point 2: Support from population and who gets to vote

- Given the Emperor and ethnic unity in Japan, the fascist government had almost universal support from
-

their population as they promised them national glory and wealth

However after the defeat at the hands of the US, the old government was discredited fully as they had
failed to deliver on their promises and the population was eager to adopt a new system
Given the success of the United States during the war and also due to the fact that democracy was not
new to Japan it was a smooth transition
But trying to introduce democracy for the first time is much harder as you are trying to impose the will
of the people on those same people
The old regime had already been discredited and many people did want to adopt a new system
However the Americans did not remove the old regime as they had done in Japan after WWII and
simply left the old regime in power
The first time around it was seen as a just war as Saddam had provoked it and the people of Iraq saw
the Americans as liberators
The second time however it was sparked by the democracies of the West
This was seen as American aggression akin to Saddams aggression and this did not garner support, as
people of Iraq did not want to adopt the ideologies of an invading destructive army
And also the question of who gets to vote, as Shiites would not want Sunnis to vote and vice versa not
to mention the Kurds
Resentful of authority unlike Japan who saw their defeat as legitimate and accepted the consequences
America just invaded Iraq and had a chance to change the regime but instead chose to abandon then
invade Iraq making the population distinctly anti-American

Point 3: United States was genuinely interested in rebuilding Japan as opposed to Iraq
Japan:

- America had real interest to prop up Japan into a stable capitalist democracy, as the Cold War was in its
early stages and the Soviets were sweeping through war-torn countries turning them communist
- America had managed to stop them temporarily in Europe with the Truman doctrine and showering
Europe in money as well as the formation of NATO
- However things had gotten worse in Asia

- With China becoming communist as well as some South East Asian countries, Japan was America s
only hope to not be completely shut out of Asia by the communists
- A genuine vested in interest in propping up Japan to fight the communists in Asia, as Japan was seen as
last bastion of Capitalism in Asia
Iraq:

- Invasion of Iraq occurred in the 90s right after the fall of the Soviet Union, during the transitional period
of Russia from communist to federal republic
Russia
was at it weakest at this point and could not contest the United States as it had done previously
- No real pressure from anyone as the United States was the uncontested world power at this time
- No real worry about the Middle East other than monetary interests, as the battle of ideologies was over