Mishima Incident

The Mishima Incident (三島事件, Mishima Jiken) occurred on November 25, 1970, where the Japanese author Yukio Mishima committed seppuku after calling on the Japan Self-Defense Forces to stage a coup d'état to abolish Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution and appealing to his own ideas and beliefs about reconstructing true national autonomy. The incident is sometimes called the Tatenokai Incident (楯の会事件, Tatenokai Jiken) after the name of the private militia, Tatenokai, of which Mishima was the captain, as members of that organization also participated in the incident.

This incident not only sent shockwaves through Japanese society, but also became breaking news outside of Japan, where people expressed shock at the unprecedented actions of an internationally renowned author. Mishima's shocking death sent huge ripples through Japanese society and literary circles, and it was said that Mishima's death marked the end of an era. It also had a major impact on Japan's political climate, including the rise to the New Right, which grew out of minzoku-ha. In Japan, in a survey conducted by the monthly magazine Bungei Shunjū in 2000 on the "20 Greatest Events of the 20th Century," the Mishima Incident was ranked second, ahead of global events such as the fall of the Berlin Wall.

This incident was a political protest and a demonstration of their political vision, but the actions themselves were not directly aimed at political terrorism or seizing power with the aim of overthrowing the government, as has become clear from court investigations and Mishima's suicide note. However, this incident is considered to have had historical significance and long-lasting repercussions in Japanese society.