Sōsuke Uno
Sōsuke Uno | |
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宇野 宗佑 | |
![]() Uno in 1977 | |
47th Prime Minister of Japan | |
In office 3 June 1989 – 10 August 1989 | |
Monarch | Akihito |
Preceded by | Noboru Takeshita |
Succeeded by | Toshiki Kaifu |
Minister for Foreign Affairs | |
In office 8 November 1987 – 3 June 1989 | |
Prime Minister | Noboru Takeshita |
Preceded by | Tadashi Kuranari |
Succeeded by | Hiroshi Mitsuzuka |
Minister of International Trade and Industry | |
In office 10 June 1983 – 27 November 1983 | |
Prime Minister | Yasuhiro Nakasone |
Preceded by | Sadanori Yamanaka |
Succeeded by | Hikosaburo Okonogi |
Director General of the Administrative Management Agency | |
In office 9 November 1979 – 17 July 1980 | |
Prime Minister | Masayoshi Ōhira |
Preceded by | Motohiko Kanai |
Succeeded by | Yasuhiro Nakasone |
Director General of the Science and Technology Agency | |
In office 24 December 1976 – 28 November 1977 | |
Prime Minister | Takeo Fukuda |
Preceded by | Masao Maeda |
Succeeded by | Tasaburo Kumagai |
Director General of the Japan Defense Agency | |
In office 11 November 1974 – 9 December 1974 | |
Prime Minister | Kakuei Tanaka |
Preceded by | Sadanori Yamanaka |
Succeeded by | Michita Sakata |
Personal details | |
Born | Moriyama, Shiga, Japan | 27 August 1922
Died | 19 May 1998 Moriyama, Shiga, Japan | (aged 75)
Political party | Liberal Democratic Party |
Alma mater | Kobe University of Commerce |
Signature | ![]() |
Military career | |
Allegiance | ![]() |
Service/ | ![]() |
Years of service | 1943-1945 |
Rank | Second Lieutenant |
Battles/wars | Second World War |
Sōsuke Uno (宇野 宗佑, Uno Sōsuke, 27 August 1922 – 19 May 1998) was a Japanese politician and the 47th Prime Minister of Japan from 3 June 1989 to 10 August 1989.
Biography
He was born in Moriyama, Shiga and attended the Kobe University of Commerce. After serving as an officer in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II, he entered politics, winning election to the Diet of Japan in 1960.
Uno's main action as prime minister was to institute the country's first consumption tax, which immediately caused an uproar among many voters and led to the Japan Socialist Party's victory in the Tokyo metropolitan legislative election of 1989. Uno's government was also hurt by repercussive effects from the Recruit Scandal of 1988. Uno assumed office on 3 June 1989.
Uno eventually had to resign after less than three months amid a sex scandal revealed by a geisha.[1][2] The controversy surrounding Uno's extramarital affair was more focused on irresponsibility to support the Geisha rather than immorality; Uno supposedly did not properly provide and support his mistress with an appropriate amount, which led her to complain publicly, and he was branded as a stingy man. The story was not widely publicized in Japan until a Washington Post reporter picked up the story from the Mainichi Shimbun, bringing international attention to Uno.
Following Uno's resignation, most LDP lawmakers refused to associate with him,[citation needed] and he quickly lost control over his faction within the party.
He died in Moriyama.
Honours
From the corresponding article in the Japanese Wikipedia
- Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun with Paulownia Flowers (29 April 1994)
References
- ^ "Obituary: Sosuke Uno". The Independent. 20 May 1998.
- ^ Weisman, Steven R. (10 June 1989). "Ex-Geisha Accuses Uno Of a Dangerous Liaison". The New York Times.
Further reading
- West, Mark D. (2006). Secrets, Sex, and Spectacle: The Rules of Scandal in Japan and the United States. Chicago University Press. ISBN 978-0-226-89408-9.