Wrongful Arrest
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Summary
But that era did not last long.
As the postwar economy grew, Japan's business circles urgently needed the conservative forces to bring about political stability. In 1955, riding this trend, the Democratic Party and the Liberal Party merged, and a single conservative party, the Liberal Democratic Party, was born. This marked the beginning of the 1955 System: permanent conservative rule was assured, and structural corruption involving collusion among political, business, and bureaucratic circles grew ever more rampant. With the establishment of the conservative political system, the institutionalization of newspapers also advanced, and tighter management brought the postwar disorder and freedom to an end.
In 1957, after reporting on a bribery case related to the Anti-Prostitution Law, Tatematsu was arrested on charges of defamation for refusing to reveal the identity of his source—an unprecedented and truly peculiar event in the history of Japanese journalism. It turned out that Tatematsu had been caught up in a power struggle within the prosecutorial authorities. Some sought to ferret out the prosecutor who had leaked information, using the violation of the National Public Service Act by officials as a basis to suppress their rivals.
Stubbornly adhering to his professional ethics as a journalist, Tatematsu consistently refused to betray his source…
Editor's review
Who it's for
A good fit for
- Readers interested in postwar Japanese political history and the evolution of media institutions
- Journalists and those who study journalistic ethics
- Readers who enjoy documentary writing and analysis of the social structures behind cases
- Legal readers interested in the oversight of power and the protection of sources
Not a good fit for
- Casual readers seeking fast-paced crime suspense
- Those with little interest in postwar Japanese political parties and the bureaucracy
- Readers hoping for a biography rich in details of the journalist's personal life
Reading tips
- Read the chapters on the 1955 System first, then return to the case itself to understand the power logic behind the arrest.
- As you read, note the differing positions of the journalist, the prosecutors, and the politicians; a simple relationship chart can help.
- Compare Tatematsu's choice not to betray his source with contemporary discussions of journalistic ethics and reflect on professional boundaries.
About the publisher
Shanghai Translation Publishing House is a Chinese publisher oriented mainly toward translation and publishing. Its publications cover foreign literature, world classics and classic works, as well as social culture, folk literature and classical poetry. The database contains 2,618 titles, including Never Let Me Go, Les Misérables (2 volumes), Don Quixote (illustrated collector's edition), The Complete Comedies of Molière (4 volumes), The Complete Novels of Kafka (3 volumes), The Collected Works of Dostoevsky (9-volume set), Reason and Persons, and Oedipus Rex (Translation Classics). Its author resources include foreign writers such as Kazuo Ishiguro, Victor Hugo, Cervantes and Molière, as well as translators such as Zheng Kelu, Sun Jiameng, Li Jianwu and Zhang Kun. The publisher has brands such as "Translation Classics Selections" and "Translation Documentary," and emphasizes translated works in foreign literature and the humanities and social sciences, while also publishing bilingual dictionaries and foreign-language educational books. Public information is limited; the above is based on the book information in the database.
Contents
- 版权信息
- 1 入狱
- 2 卖淫贪污事件
- 3 受命
- 4 初显身手（其一）
- 5 初显身手（其二）
- 6 埋下宿因
- 7 腾空跃起的猫
- 8 问题报道
- 9 “你要被捕了”
- 10 前世的渊源
- 11 朴烈事件
- 12 怪写真事件
- 13 惊人的早熟
- 14 检察机关内部的复仇赛
- 15 “请忘掉法律什么的吧”
- 16 释放
- 17 初识立松
- 18 爆料人
- 19 舞台已经变换了
- 20 谢幕
- 主要参考文献
- 后记
FAQ
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About the author
Honda Yasuharu (1933–2004) was a Japanese journalist and nonfiction writer known for documentary writing on social incidents. He worked in news reporting for many years before turning to literary nonfiction, and was skilled at conducting in-depth investigations around specific cases and social events, transforming first-hand interview material into strongly narrative reportage. His representative work, Improper Arrest, draws on a social case and, through meticulous investigation and restrained narration, presents the social context and human circumstances behind the event, reflecting the Japanese documentary tradition's emphasis on factual verification and a sense of the scene. One of his works is included in this catalog. Public information on his education, institutional affiliations, and awards is limited, so no speculation is offered here. Overall, Honda Yasuharu's writing is distinguished by solid interviewing and a restrained style, leaving texts of documentary value within postwar Japanese social nonfiction.
Wang Jiamin is an author about whom publicly available information is limited, and little is currently known about his life. His works fall mainly into two categories: documentary literature and foreign literature. Four of his books are held in the collection, spanning a wide range of subjects. These include The Fraudulent Scientist, which deals with the STAP cell scandal in the Japanese scientific community; Improper Arrest, which touches on judicial and arrest-related issues; The Last Twelve at Yamaichi Securities, which records the final years of that firm; and Valley, My Home, which focuses on the later life and ideal care of elderly residents in shantytown neighborhoods. Drawing on real events and social realities, these works use a documentary approach to examine public issues such as scientific ethics, judicial fairness, corporate rise and fall, and elderly care, showing sustained attention to individual circumstances and social structures. Because public sources are limited, his personal background cannot yet be confirmed and awaits further information.
Wang Xiujuan is an author about whom limited public information is available. Three works are known to be in circulation: Surviving the Death Row, Improper Arrest, and The Rear Guard: The Last Twelve People of Yamaichi Securities. Her books are commonly classified under social culture and documentary literature. Judging from their titles and subjects, her writing centers on judicial cases, criminal procedure, and the rise and fall of financial firms, drawing on real events and focusing on the situation and fate of individuals within institutional processes. Such works usually proceed through the study of documents and interviews with those involved, reconstructing how events unfolded while showing the choices people make under pressure from the judicial system and organizations. Because biographical details about the author are not found in the available materials, her education, professional career, and writing history cannot be confirmed; readers may nonetheless gain a sense of her thematic interests and her approach to documentary writing from the works mentioned above.
