 to Germany from Alaska to Puerto Rico all over the world the United States Army is on the alert to defend our country you the American people against aggression this is the big picture an official television report to the nation from the United States Army now to show you part of the big picture here is Sergeant Stuart Queen Japan is the key to the fate of the Far East once again for the second time in the March of Modern History those words have urgent reality but now there is a difference in their meaning the United States Army has come to know Japan well in recent years in war in occupation and finally in partnership in the record of that relationship there can be found the changing symbol of Japan's place in the Far East once it was a symbol of destruction today we look upon it with hope as a symbol of stability Iratia imaso that means welcome home in Japanese to these American soldiers after a tour of duty in Korea they are returning to their base in Japan where once a short time before they were stationed as occupation troops and how do they return how are they received by the people whose land they occupy not as overlords not as antagonists not as men who are distressed it and feared and presented but as friends the military occupation of Japan is long since over now but this is its fruit it was an occupation without precedent in the history of the Orient and its results are likewise unparalleled a strong active friendship grows out of old enmities a bond of mutual trust and goodwill ties together the people who once were the victors and those who were the vanquished Iratia imaso said with warmth and feeling it is a welcome that would thrill any soldier it's a different kind of reception from the fall of 1945 when the Americans marched through the streets of Japan while the Japanese people huddled silent and frightened by their bombed-out houses there were no cries then of welcome on their lips and in their faces there was no sign of friendship only fear and apprehension how could this picture change so completely in a few years time what accounts for the difference it is the difference between this which was Japan at the end of the war a defeated nation lying in ruins its land gutted and scarred many of its old modes of life uprooted hundreds of thousands of its people lost a nation without hope bewildered and confused and this the Japan which stands today a nation rebuilt after the years of American occupation rededicated to democratic pursuits and realigned in friendship with the West this is particularly important to the free world today because again Japan's future is the key to the future of the entire far East during the years of Japan's struggle for new life the menace of Soviet aggression began to spread over the Orient the Russians would like to include Japan in their orbit because of its location and its industrial capacity and if they were able to take over Japan they would soon be able to control all Asia toward this end the communists in Japan have employed their usual tools of dissension and discord the communists here are not strong but they are noisy they have tried to undermine Japan's security by promoting hatred of Americans their campaign has harvested violence bitter demonstrations of mob passion whose purpose was to drive a wedge between the Japanese and American people but in spite of the most serious efforts of the communists Japan's ties with the United States remains strong those ties made of respect and trust and cooperation started building immediately in the occupation when the Japanese first met the American forces and learned their purpose they found that instead of coming as conquering masters to their homeland the Americans came instead as friends to help the Japanese clear new paths toward peace and prosperity to the Herculean task of rebuilding their devastated nation the Japanese people themselves brought their native gifts of diligence industriousness and persistence with a devotion that matched that of any people in the world's history they labored hard to remove the evidences of war from their beloved land who aid them in this task the United States brought assistance and encouragement Japan's new constitution compiled under American guidance led the framework for democracy it gave the people the right to exercise their sovereignty through their elected representatives as a result the phenomenon of free elections a condition which Americans accept as casually as they accept the air they breathe began to appear for the first time in Japan's long history political parties sprang up and campaigned for their candidates in the free swinging style of a democracy women were given the right to vote Japan's new constitution brought other changes civil liberties were guaranteed for all persons men and women rich and poor the press had always been a tightly controlled voice of the state in Japan the militarist government before the war had used it to keep the people deluded and submissive under the occupation the press was made free and with freedom of the press came the other great freedoms of democracy freedom of speech and freedom of assembly democracy was new and strange to the Japanese people but they responded to its exhilarating effects with seriousness and responsibility another great reform brought by the occupation was the redistribution of farmland at the end of the war two-thirds of Japan's farmers were tenants working land not their own for only a small share of the crop today as a result of the land reform program brought about in the occupation 90% of Japan's farmers have a piece of land of their own the total amount of arable land in Japan is small the average farm is only two and a half acres compared to 155 in the United States because of this the average Japanese farmer is not wealthy but he tends his land carefully conserving every precious inch of it and the fruits of his labor are his own he is independent and independence was long the Japanese farmers dream to help rebuild Japan the United States supplied help in tangible form as well as political and economic guidance during the occupation we gave Japan more than two billion dollars worth of aid including food for the war had all but shattered Japan's economy and the hungry people cannot learn democratic ways very quickly the task of reconstructing the devastated nation was slow and difficult with many heartbreaking setbacks like the floodwaters which rolled up from the sea carrying misery and destruction floods engulfed Japan in various sections but each place the tragic story was the same after the tides had subsided acre after acre of carefully tended farmland lay covered entire communities were isolated when catastrophe like this struck the occupation forces rushed emergency aid to the stricken communities the army's medical corps assumed the task of pushing through whatever obstacles it could to deliver needed personnel and equipment nurses and doctors to care for the sick medical supplies to ward off disease food and clothing under the stimulus of American aid Japan's industry began to revive slowly at first and often literally from scratch materials were scarce but the industrious Japanese people have a great amount of ingenuity and they accepted what little they had and built from that the lowly tin can for instance discarded at American military bases and salvaged by the Japanese became raw material in the revival of Japan's important toy industry the sea has always been an important source of Japan's food supply and since ancient times her fishing fleets have been her greatest industry in normal times her fishermen bring in one fourth of the world's fish products but the end of the war found almost half the fleet sunk or out of commission and what was left was in harbor for lack of fuel and equipment occupation authorities put fishing high on the list of industries needing help and once more the coastal waters around Japan are filled with vessels carrying fishermen who comb the sea for one of the most important staples in the Japanese diet Japan's textile industry including its famed silk mills was one of the first industries to be revived today although it has been hampered by diminishing markets textiles make up nearly half of Japan's exports Japan's heavy industry began to grow such as the ship building industry which revived the nation's merchant fleet to carry Japan's exports into the world markets this industrial rebirth was spurred not only by American aid but also by Japan's own affinity for industrialization since the 19th century Japan has been mastering the techniques of industrial production matching the best records produced during the industrial revolution in the west this ability once made Japan the strongest nation in all Asia but the war set her back some 10 years behind the west in industrial techniques she suffered from old plants and equipment and lack of contact with technical advances elsewhere in the world but with American help she started to catch up not only government help but private American investment as well has helped Japan in this effort some of the United States leading industrial enterprises encouraged by investment incentives have developed a private technical assistance program which is aiding Japan immeasurably and once again Japan is ahead of every other nation in Asia in knowledge of mass production methods Japan became particularly important to the United States when the communist armies shook the stability of the far east by marching on South Korea in the summer of 1950 when the free world promptly met the challenge Japan became the base from which the United Nations directed its campaign to halt aggression it was now that the real test of Japan's friendship for the United States came occupation troops left Japan for the fighting zone at one point every major tactical unit had left Japan in many military occupations this would be a dangerous situation signaling the opportunity for uprising among the occupied people but in Japan there was no disturbance the occupation proved a success without Japanese bases from which to move troops and equipment the prosecution of the Korean campaign would have been much more difficult indeed the Japanese helped our war effort not only through their loyalty and moral support but in a more direct way as well Japanese industrialists turned their attention to the war needs of the United Nations and on a competitive bid basis undertook to produce these items their factories turned out equipment of all kinds for the fighting troops of the United Nations Japanese laborers worked in United States Army plants to repair damaged military equipment all this activity spurred by Japan's friendship with the United States had also a beneficial effect upon Japanese industry the United Nations spent at the rate of 300 million dollars a year for the military goods it bought related spending by United Nations forces pumped another 500 million dollars a year into Japan's economy over the last few years the Japanese people have had occasion to meet many Americans high-ranking representatives of the United States from all walks of American life but the greatest unofficial ambassador of goodwill has been the American soldier since the very beginning of the occupation he has been in direct contact with the Japanese people themselves most of what they know of American life they have learned from the soldiers who have been stationed in their land the association was not always there were many barriers to complete understanding particularly language and cultural ones but both the Japanese citizens and the American soldiers put their hearts into it and it is out of their association that the friendship between the two countries derives much of its strength it is with the children of any foreign country that the American soldier first makes friends and Japan was no exception candy the universal language of childhood the common denominator of friendship some might call this bribery the art of buying friendship well perhaps but a child's friendship is not easily bought so perhaps there is another name for it which the child knows whether the cynic does or not kindness it is an art which the GI has practiced for a long time and children the world over have responded in Japan the soldiers and children became fast friends immediately almost every military unit in the country entertained a group of youngsters at one time or another they contributed generously to orphanages and other child charities the American soldier did not set out consciously to be an ambassador even an unofficial one all he had in mind was to enjoy himself as well as he could away from home to take advantage of all the opportunities for enjoyment that the scenic land of Japan offered not everything in this strange culture was easy for him to understand the Shinto religion for instance or the precise formality of Japanese manners but the soldier didn't have to understand it all to appreciate it and in his appreciation of the things Japan had to offer he earned the goodwill of the Japanese people as well as finding pleasure himself in the enjoyment of new experiences for their part the Japanese too had difficulty understanding some American customs but through exhibitions staged by the American forces country fairs for instance where American landmarks were represented the Japanese learned a great deal about the United States replicas of American institutions enabled them to learn something of its government they were fascinated in their discovery of its political history its industrial strength the majestic look of its cities they learned about us in other ways too customs and traditions which for ages have appealed to children of the West had an impact on children of the East the Boy Scout movement always popular with Japanese youth deteriorated during the war years but its revival after the war found the same kind of popularity with the new generation of Japanese boys international jamborees provided Japanese scouts with an opportunity to meet and work with boys of other nations with great success it is among the youth that westernization has a particular appeal in Japan at a school set up by American women in Japan young Japanese wives of American soldiers learn how an American housewife goes about her duties it's not that one system is better than the other but there are areas of great difference between the Japanese and the American way of baby tending cooking and many other activities these young Japanese brides will soon be going to the United States with their husbands and they want to learn the customs and the manners of their new home in the steady forging of friendship between the two peoples the Japanese and Americans have done more than sample each other's cultures they have participated together in many activities their youth have met on the field of sports a good proving ground for any friendship swimming meets are a particular favorite drawing great crowds of spectators Americans and Japanese alike traditionally both nations produce top swimmers and they delight in bringing their best representatives together to play aquatic games or to compete in distance swimming each with his own distinctive style competition in sports in itself is not perhaps a solid enough base upon which a structure of international friendship can be built but it helps the military occupation of Japan ended on April 28 1952 after a peace treaty between the two countries was signed at San Francisco American troops are still in Japan today as defense troops training instead of performing occupation duties we recognize the defense of Japan as our first military responsibility in the far East and by mutual agreement between the Japanese and American government our troops will remain in Japan to provide her with the security she needs Japan lies perilously close to both Russia and communist China and the American troops in Japan are closer than any other forces to the iron curtain which hides Soviet ambitions so in a very real sense these troops are poised on the front lines of the free world's defenses for there is little doubt that Japan figures prominently in long-range Soviet plans through constant training and maneuver these troops prepare for any sudden move any eventuality for the harsh truth today is that strength and vigilance are the price of freedom the free world has learned that and Japan has recognized it too and is moving steadily toward the day when she will be strong enough to defend herself against aggression Japan has a national security force of 110,000 men made up of police and constabulary troops who were trained during the occupation this force will be expanded in the future and with American help equipped with heavy weapons picking her way carefully through the mistakes of recent history avoiding the excesses that led once to catastrophe Japan is taking on the responsibilities that go with freedom Japan's historic and colorful past is important and meaningful to the Japanese nation today for out of that past has come the folklore the traditions and beliefs which mold a national character Japan's period of association with the West has been relatively short as history goes here American friends of Japan help the Japanese people celebrate the anniversary of the opening of one of the nation's major ports to Western ships less than a century ago that century of contact with the Western world has been a turbulent one for Japan it has brought her great strength but it is also brought great defeat and violent change to many of the symbols and values she lived by but out of it all there is emerging today a new Japan with tradition still rooted in its national past but with its future tied to the fortunes of the West a strong Japan in which the free world sees the hope of stability and peace in the orient our ties of friendship with Japan are strong in this fact lies part of our strength and much of our hope for peace this is sergeant Stuart Queen inviting you to be with us on this same channel next week for another look at the big picture the United States Army in action the big picture is a weekly television report to the nation on the activities of the army at home and overseas produced by the signal core pictorial center presented by the U.S. Army in cooperation with this station you can be an important part of the big picture you can proudly serve with the best equipped the best trained the best fighting team in the world today the United States Army