Inejirō Asanuma

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Inejiro Asanuma (浅沼 稲次郎, Asanuma Inejirō; 27 December 1898 – 12 October 1960) was a Japanese politician and chairman of the Japan Socialist Party from 23 March 1960 until his assassination the same year. Known for his large stature and powerful voice, he tirelessly toured the country delivering speeches, earning him the nicknames "speech-making everyman" (enzetsu hyakushō), "human locomotive" (ningen kikan-sha), and the affectionate "Numa-san". In the prewar years, Asanuma was a forceful advocate of socialist policies and tenant and farmer rights. During World War II, Asanuma aligned himself with the Imperial Rule Assistance Association and supported Japan's war in Asia. In the postwar period, Asanuma resumed forceful advocacy of socialism and sharply criticized the U.S.–Japan alliance. During visits to China in 1957 and 1959, he publicly expressed deep remorse for Japan's wartime invasion and aggression against the Chinese people and declared that "American imperialism is the common enemy...

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