Abstract
Against the backdrop of a request from GHQ, Yoshio Tanaka of the Health Division of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry took the lead in drafting the law. While coordinating with various parts of the government, the Rabies Prevention Law was enacted through legislation passed by Diet member Yukimatsu Harada, who was a veterinarian.
The outbreak of rabies that continued from 1948 to 1949 was a matter of grave concern to the GHQ authorities.However, contrary to the intentions of GHQ officials, quarantine activities remained sluggish, and the Director General of the Public Health and Welfare Bureau of the General Headquarters sent a memorandum “On the Establishment of Rabies Prevention Measures”. This memorandum had a great impact on the enactment of the Rabies Prevention Law, but behind the scenes, there was strong pressure from GHQ on the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and the Ministry of Health and Welfare (Ministry of Home Affairs).
Dr. Beechwood continued to attend various meetings and directly advocated the strengthening of rabies prevention and eradication, complaining about the handling of the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry…(omission)…Whenever there was a long phone call to the Director of the Health Division at that time, it was always to Dr. Beechwood. Whenever he received a long phone call, it was usually from Dr. Beachwood, who would ‘browbeat’, ‘scold’, and sometimes ‘plead’ his grievances, and then beg for more active cooperation. Yoshio Tanaka of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry’s Health Division, who led the drafting process at the time, recalls.
At the request of Dr. Beechwood (Public Health and Welfare Bureau, GHQ), the Health Division of the Animal Husbandry Bureau of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry was asked to cooperate in the enactment of the Rabies Prevention Law, in preference to the Ministry of Health, which was in charge of the matter at the time. The Health Division Chief repeatedly refused to cooperate with the Ministry, but after being persuaded by GHQ’s appeal, the Health Division Chief became involved in the drafting of the Rabies Prevention Law.
Since the head of the Public Health Division of the Livestock Bureau was busy with liaison work, Yoshio Tanaka, then head of the Livestock Quarantine Team, was put in charge of drafting the draft.
He told Dr. Beechwood at GHQ that he had been asked by the Chief of the Public Health Division to draft the law, and that he would work on it while respecting the general principles of livestock quarantine, the characteristics of rabies, and the intent of the memorandum from General Sams, and that he would leave the details and wording to Dr. Beechwood. The drafting of the document was done in great haste, as the rabies epidemic was then in full swing and there was a special request from GHQ, so the drafting was completed in a short period of time.
The drafting was based on the general principles of quarantine and took into account the special characteristics of public health and rabies quarantine in Japan. In addition, since it was difficult to secure a new budget at the time, the draft was completed with a structure that would allow it to be operated within the framework of the already enacted quarantine funds for the enforcement of the Domestic Animal Infectious Disease Prevention Law.
Once a rough draft was completed, Mr. Tanaka coordinated his views with Mr. Yukimatsu Harada, a member of the Diet (veterinarian), and obtained approval from the relevant departments within the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. He then went to the Diet’s legislative deliberation authority to finalize the draft as a law. From this stage until the submission of the draft law to the Diet, the Ministry of Health and Welfare actively cooperated in gathering materials related to the draft law, as well as in drafting the necessary cabinet orders and ministerial ordinances.
Since the enactment of the law was urgent due to the ongoing rabies epidemic, and there was no time to spare for deliberation if the law to be submitted by the government, (*) legislation by members of the Diet was chosen.
After a hearing at the Legislative Bureau, etc., the bill was discussed in the Health and Welfare Committee, and debates were held in the House of Representatives and the House of Councillors. The passion, power, and reasoned logic of Senator Harada’s explanation of the reasons for his proposal attracted all members of the House, and deliberations proceeded at an unusually rapid pace. On July 28, 1950, the bill was passed by the House of Representatives, and on July 31, 1950, it was passed by the House of Councillors, resulting in the enactment of the Rabies Prevention Law.
(*) Legislation proposed and enacted by diet members = legislation by diet members; legislation drafted and submitted to the Diet by the Cabinet = legislation by the Cabinet.
In 1929, although the main responsibility for rabies prevention was transferred to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the drafting of the Rabies Prevention Law was carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry. There was a period of conflict between the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry that led to the transfer of rabies prevention affairs to the Ministry of Home Affairs, but Yoshio Tanaka of the Health Division of the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, who was involved in the drafting process, stated as follows
”This great success is the result of the appropriate implementation of the law by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the relevant prefectural governments, as well as the tireless efforts of the Japan Veterinary Medical Association and veterinarians throughout Japan.”
– Yoshio Tanaka (Health Division, Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry)
The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries (MARF), which worked hard to enact the Rabies Prevention Law, the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MHW), prefectural governments, and veterinarians all worked together to take measures against rabies, and as a result, rabies control in Japan was achieved.
Reference
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