Asahi Shimbun Digital Article [Ed: see bottom of page for Japanese version of article]
Li Xianglan, the mystery of her current situation: A glimpse of her momentary anger
Paid article
by Editorial Committee Member: Seiji Nagai November 4, 2019 16:00
Yoshiko Yamaguchi (1920-2014) was an actress who rose to prominence as the Chinese Li Xianglan in the wartime continent. Five years after her death, an unfinished interview from her later years has been published on Asahi Shimbun Digital, complete with her voice. There was something about this interview that had always bothered me. It was the look of anger she showed for just a moment. What was that all about? I decided to visit a certain researcher [Ed: Kenko Kawasaki] to get to the bottom of the background.
Yamaguchi began giving interviews in October 2007, lasting about two hours each time. She talked about her memories of the mainland while looking at a number of prewar and wartime photographs [actually postcards] from the Asahi Shimbun collection.
During some casual conversation, the topic of military personnel involved in the Manchurian Incident came up, and I listed a few famous names.
"Doihara..."
She frowned for a moment at the mention of the name, then repeated it in an exasperated low voice. She quickly smiled and casually changed the topic, but her anger left a strong impression on me.
"Doihara" refers to Kenji Doihara (1883-1948), who was responsible for intelligence and plots in the former Manchuria (northeastern China) and was executed as a Class A war criminal after Japan's defeat in the war. I felt something was off about her strong reaction and thought, "She must really hate him."
Now that I have made this interview public with the consent of her family, I went to meet with Rikkyo University professor Kenko Kawasaki (63) to find out the reason for her anger. Kawasaki is a researcher who has researched Yamaguchi's career and connections through domestic and international documents, and published "Another Girlfriend: Li Xianglan / Yamaguchi Yoshiko / Shirley Yamaguchi" this spring.
"It has become clear that Doihara had secret ties with her father and his associates," Kawasaki said.
Who are my father's "friends"?
Photograph 2
Doihara Kenji, a former army officer who led espionage activities, plots and other political maneuvers on the continent, July 1938
One of them was General Li Jichuan, a Chinese man who gave the 13-year-old girl the name "Li Xianglan" and made her his stepdaughter.
In 1932, Yamaguchi and his family moved from Fushun to Fengtian (now Shenyang), relying on Li. This was the time when, as a result of the fighting that followed the Manchurian Incident, the Kwantung Army of the Imperial Japanese Army suppressed and eliminated the major anti-Japanese forces among the warlords that were based in northeastern and northern China.
Li was the leader of a pro-Japanese warlord [I believe the correct translation is "He was a pro-Japanese warlord leader"]. According to Kawasaki's research, the Japanese military was planning to transfer 4,000 of Li's troops to the police force and disarm 8,000. However, Li refused to comply and engaged in negotiations with the Kwantung Army. He was a key figure who influenced the situation in northeastern China at the time.
Another of his [Fumio's] "comrades" was Pan Yugui, a leading figure in North China's political circles. He also adopted her and sent her to a prestigious girls' school in Beijing from 1934 to 1938.
During this time, in July 1937, the Marco Polo Bridge Incident occurred, which marked the beginning of the Sino-Japanese War. The person who negotiated a ceasefire with the Japanese army on the Chinese side was Song Zheyuan, a leader of a pro-Japanese warlord [again, the correct translation may be "he was a pro-Japanese warlord leader"]. Among Chinese leaders, there were movements to overthrow Song by forming a blood-brotherly pact with him, criticizing his stance toward Japan as "weak."
Pan was an adviser to the Song army and was in a position to support Song. However, when Kawasaki looked into documents from the army's intelligence agency at the time, she found Pan's name among the sworn brothers who were trying to overthrow Song. The documents described Pan as "vicious." This shows that behind his facade as a pro-Japanese leader, Pan was also in the midst of a fierce political struggle.
However, in her autobiography "Li Xianglan: My Half-Life" (1987), Yamaguchi wrote that General Li was "a kind old man living next door to me," and that "he must have left the wicked business of the warlords and lived a comfortable life as a businessman." She also described Pan as "having a refined appearance and a dignified presence."
I was surprised to learn that behind the kindness and dignity she showed, her two Chinese "stepfathers" were engaged in a battle of wiles.
So what kind of person is Yamaguchi Fumio, the father who called these big names "old friends" and entrusted his eldest daughter to them?
"One of the biggest mysteries surrounding her is who her father is," Kawasaki said. [Ed: I don't think Kenko meant "who was her biologic father", I think she meant "what kind of man was Fumio"?]
Photograph 3
Mother Ai (right) and father Fumio holding newborn Yoshiko Yamaguchi in 1920
Fumio was born in Saga Prefecture in 1889. He traveled to China in 1906 and studied at the Qingyu Dohyo, a Chinese language school established in Beijing for Japanese people. It is said that it was around this time that he developed deep friendships with Li and Pan.
Li, Pan, and her father, Fumio. Behind these three is Doihara.
Although Li Jichun sometimes showed signs of rebellion between the fall of 1931 and the beginning of 1933, just after the Manchurian Incident, he mobilized his own troops in response to Doihara's schemes. Pan, who supported Li, was one of Song Zhe-yuan's close aides and had close ties with the intelligence agency of the Kwantung Army, which Doihara controlled.
So, what was the relationship between Fumio and Doihara?
When Kawasaki looked into the leaders of the Qing Linguistic Association, where Fumio studied, she found the name of Kawashima Naniwa among the council members. He was one of the civilians known as "大陸浪人" (pronounced "continental ronin"), who participated in political maneuvering and plotting in China. He was a big name who was active in the information war surrounding the Manchuria-Mongolia independence movement.
Photograph 4
Kawashima Naniwa (right), a continental ronin who planned the Manchuria-Mongolia independence movement, and his adopted daughter Kawashima Yoshiko, dressed as a man in a Waseda Junior High School uniform, on board an express train bound for Shimonoseki on November 30, 1925.
And behind Kawashima Naniwa was Doihara, the commander of the information war. Kawasaki believes that it is highly likely that Fumio became acquainted with Kawashima Naniwa through the society and then eventually began to keep in regular contact with Doihara.
Fumio had told people around him that he wanted his daughter to be a politician's secretary. This suggests that he may have intended for her to be useful in gathering information for himself. In 1938, when Yamaguchi was 18 years old, she made her debut with the Manchuria Film Association (Man'ei) under the name "Li Xianglan." The go-between for her and Yamaguchi was Major Yamaga Toru, who was in charge of propaganda work for the North China Expeditionary Army, which was backed by Doihara. Yamaguchi then appeared in government-sponsored films that touted friendship between Japan and China as a "Chinese actress who excelled in Japanese," and became extremely popular.
In her autobiography, Yamaguchi wrote that after the war, she severed ties with her father, who had piled up debt and caused trouble for his family. She regretted having played the role of a "symbol of friendship between Japan and China," and even described her past as a "past crime."
Photograph 5
Ms. Kenko Kawasaki, who researched domestic and foreign documents related to Li Xianglan and published a book called "Another Girl," said, "Knowing her hidden face better will lead to a deeper understanding of our history." (August 15, 2019, Rikkyo University, Toshima Ward, Tokyo)
Kawasaki believes that "As she grew older, she probably realized her fathers' intentions and continued to harbor strong feelings toward him and the people behind them, who had tried to use her."
Behind the false image that was created by those around it as a "symbol of friendship between Japan and China," political motives and conflicts were swirling. Kawasaki believes that solving this mystery will lead to the truth of how Japan has been involved with the continent.
"What's important is to dig up records and describe her as she really was. This is the most important thing to do in order to accurately understand 'Li Xianglan and Her Times.'"
Li Xianglan talks about the prewar and wartime period in her later years
After the third interview in February 2008, Yamaguchi's health deteriorated and she was forced to give up on further interviews. She left comments for 127 photos from before and during the war, and passed away on September 7, 2014. (by Editorial Committee Member, Seiji Nagai)
The connections surrounding Li Xianglan's father, Yamaguchi Fumio:
Kenji Doihara: A former army officer. He oversaw the intelligence activities carried out by the Japanese army in Manchuria and was executed in 1948 as a Class A war criminal.
Naniwa Kawashima: A major continental ronin who was active in the intelligence war. He was an advisor at the language school in Beijing where Fumio studied. He was also the father-in-law of Yoshiko Kawashima, who was a member of the Qing Dynasty royalty but donned a military uniform and devoted herself to intelligence activities for the Japanese military, and was known as the "beauty in men's clothing."
Li Jishun: An old friend of Fumio and the leader of a pro-Japanese military faction. He let Fumio live next door to his house and gave the name "Li Xianglan" to Fumio's eldest daughter, Yoshiko.
Pan Yugui: A pro-Japanese figure in the North China political world. As an old friend of Wenxiong, he took care of his eldest daughter, Yoshiko, and sent her to a prestigious girls' school in Beijing.
[please see comments by John M. on this article and subject, at bottom of page.]
x-x-x-x-x
李香蘭、今も巡る境遇のなぞ のぞかせた一瞬の怒り
編集委員・永井靖二
戦時下の大陸で中国人・李香蘭として時代の花形となった女優、山口淑子さん（１９２０～２０１４）。亡くなって５年がたつのを機に、未完に終わった晩年のインタビューを肉声とともに朝日新聞デジタルで公開している。このインタビューで、ずっと引っかかっていたことがあった。彼女が一瞬だけ見せた、怒りの表情だ。あれは何だったのだろう――。背景に迫ろうと、私はある研究者を訪ねることにした。
山口さんは２００７年１０月から、１回あたり約２時間ずつインタビューに応じた。朝日新聞が所蔵する戦前・戦中の数々の写真を見ながら、大陸の思い出を語ってもらう取材だった。
その合間の雑談で、満州事変に関わった軍人の話題になり、私が有名な数人を列挙した瞬間だった。
「土肥原……」
彼女はその名前にだけ一瞬険しい表情を見せ、憤った低い声で繰り返した。すぐ笑顔に戻ってさりげなく話題を変えたが、その剣幕に強い印象を受けた。
「土肥原」とは、旧満州（中国東北部）で諜報（ちょうほう）や謀略を指揮し、敗戦後にＡ級戦犯として処刑された土肥原賢二（１８８３～１９４８）のことだ。私は彼女の激しい反応に違和感を覚え、「よほど嫌いなんだな」と思った。
今回、遺族の了解を得てインタビューを公開したのを機に、彼女が見せた怒りの理由を知ろうと、立教大学特任教授・川崎賢子さん（６３）に会いに行った。川崎さんは、山口さんの経歴や人脈を内外の文書で調べ、今春に「もう一人の彼女 李香蘭／山口淑子／シャーリー・ヤマグチ」を出版した研究者だ。
「土肥原は、彼女の父親やその仲間と、水面下で関わりのあったことが分かってきました」と、川崎さんは語った。
父親の「その仲間」とは誰なのか。
一人は、１３歳の彼女に「李香蘭」の名を授け、義理の娘とした中国人、李際春将軍だ。
山口さん一家は１９３２年、李を頼って撫順から奉天（現・瀋陽）へと転居した。満州事変から続いた戦闘の結果、旧日本陸軍の関東軍が、中国東北部や華北地方に割拠していた軍閥のうち、抗日を掲げた主要勢力を制圧・排除した時期だ。
李は親日派として動いた軍閥の領袖（りょうしゅう）だった。川崎さんの研究では、日本軍は当時、李の軍のうち４千人を警察隊へ異動させ、８千人を武装解除しようとしていた。だが、李は応じようとせず、関東軍と駆け引きを繰り広げていたという。当時の中国東北部の情勢を左右するキーパーソンと言える存在だった。
「仲間」のもう一人は、華北政界の重鎮、潘毓桂。やはり彼女を養女とし、１９３４～３８年に北京の名門女学校へ通わせた。
この間の３７年７月、日中開戦の発端となった盧溝橋事件が起きた。中国側で日本軍との停戦交渉にあたったのは、親日派軍閥の巨頭、宋哲元。中国側の要人には、宋の対日姿勢を「弱腰」と批判し、義兄弟の盟を結んで宋を打倒する動きがあった。
潘は、この宋の軍の顧問に就いていた人物で、宋を支える立場だ。だが、川崎さんが当時の陸軍の情報機関の文書を調べると、宋を打倒しようとする義兄弟の顔ぶれの中に、潘の名前があった。文書は潘を「悪辣（あくらつ）」と評していた。潘も親日派重鎮としての顔の裏側で、激しい政争の渦中にいたことを示している。
ところが、山口さんは自伝「李香蘭 私の半生」（８７年）で、李将軍を「私にとってはとなりに住む好々爺（こうこうや）」で「軍閥という“無頼漢”稼業から足をあらい、財界人として悠々自適の生活を送っていたのだろう」と記す。潘については「風貌（ふうぼう）は上品、貫禄がある」と描いている。
中国の２人の「義理の父親」たちが、彼女に見せた優しさや威厳の裏で、権謀術数を戦わせていた事実に私は驚いた。
では、そんな大物たちを「旧友」と呼び、長女を託した父・山口文雄はどんな人物なのか。
「彼女に絡む最大の謎の一つは、父親なのです」と川崎さんは話した。
文雄は１８８９年、佐賀県の生まれ。１９０６年に中国へ渡り、日本人向けの中国語学校として北京に創設された清語同学会で学んだ。李や潘と深い交友を結んだのは、この頃とされる。
李、潘、そして父の文雄。この３人の背後に見えるのが、土肥原だ。
李は満州事変直後の３１年秋～３３年初頭、時に反抗する姿勢を見せながらも、土肥原の謀略に呼応して自軍を動かした。その李を支えた潘も、前述した宋哲元の側近の一人として、土肥原が差配する関東軍の諜報機関と浅からぬ接点があった。
では、文雄と土肥原の関係はどうか。
文雄が学んだ清語同学会の幹部の顔ぶれを川崎さんが調べると、評議員に川島浪速の名があった。中国で政治工作や謀略に加担して「大陸浪人」と呼ばれた民間人の一人。満蒙独立運動をめぐる情報戦で暗躍した大物だ。
そして、川島浪速の背後には、情報戦の指揮官である土肥原がいた。文雄は同学会を経て川島浪速と気脈を通じるようになり、やがて土肥原とも日頃から連絡を取り合うようになった可能性が高い、と川崎さんはみる。
文雄は娘を「政治家の秘書にしたい」と周囲に語っていた。自らの情報収集に役立てる意図だった可能性をうかがわせる。山口さんが１８歳だった３８年、「李香蘭」の名で満州映画協会（満映）からデビューする際の橋渡し役は、土肥原の息がかかった北支派遣軍で宣撫（せんぶ）工作を担当した山家亨少佐だった。そして山口さんは、「日本語が得意な中国人女優」として日中友好をうたう国策映画などに出演し、大人気を博していく。
山口さんは戦後、借金を重ねて家族に迷惑をかけた父と絶縁したことを自伝に書き残した。「日中友好の象徴」を演じたことを後悔し、その経歴を「過去の“罪状”」とまで記した。
「長じて父親たちの意図に気づき、自分を利用しようとした父やその背後にいた人々に、激しい感情を持ち続けていたのではないでしょうか」と、川崎さんは考えている。
「日中友好の象徴」として周囲が作り上げた虚像の背後に、政治的思惑や抗争が渦巻いていた。その謎解きこそが、日本が大陸とどう関わってきたかという真相解明につながる、と川崎さんは考えている。
「大切なのは、記録を掘り起こして等身大の彼女を記述すること。『李香蘭とその時代』を正確に理解するためには、それが一番重要なのです」
山口さんは２００８年２月の３回目のインタビューの後、体調を崩し、それ以上の取材はあきらめざるを得なくなった。彼女は戦前・戦中の１２７枚の写真にコメントを残し、２０１４年９月７日に世を去った。（編集委員・永井靖二）
李香蘭の父・山口文雄をめぐる人脈
●土肥原賢二 旧陸軍の幹部。日本軍が旧満州で繰り広げた諜報（ちょうほう）活動を差配し、Ａ級戦犯として１９４８年に処刑された
●川島浪速 諜報戦に暗躍した大陸浪人の大物。文雄が学んだ北京の語学学校の顧問だった。清朝の王族ながら日本軍の諜報活動に軍服をまとって身を投じ、「男装の麗人」と呼ばれた川島芳子の義父でもある。
●李際春 文雄の「旧友」で、親日派軍閥の領袖（りょうしゅう）。自宅の隣に文雄を住まわせ、文雄の長女・淑子に「李香蘭」の名を授けた
●潘毓桂 中国・華北政界で「親日派」の大物。文雄の「旧友」として長女の淑子を預かり、北京の名門女学校に通わせた
この記事を書いた人
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I applaud the research efforts that Kenko Kawasaki has done regarding the activities and background story involving Fumio Yamaguchi, Li Jichun, Pan Yugui, Kenji Doihara, and Naniwa Kawashima. Certainly, on one level it is fascinating to learn about these details, but on the other hand it is a problematic task to try and connect all this shady intrigue to the very star of Yoshiko Yamaguchi.
The Yamaguchi family was forced to abandon their established life in Fushun by the Japanese police investigating the 1932 attack on the Fushun coalmine because Fumio was accused of colluding with the 'bandits' who carried it out. This fact shows the complexity of a situation involving "National Policy" and how it affected the family in a negative way. The full extent of Fumio's 'collaboration' (if we may call it that) with the 'Doihara office' is a mystery, leading to suppositions about his daughter Yoshiko's actions.
From my point of view, an intelligent child like Yoshiko probably saw many social interactions between her father and others as just part of the social fabric. She states in her memoir that she was happy to be moving to a metropolis like Mukden "where even a sparrow looked more resplendent". Certainly the family was moving in high-level social circles (as shown by Fumio's relationships with powerful people such as Doihara, Li Jichun, and Pan Yugui). Yoshiko was in effect learning the art of diplomacy by observing all this interaction. She learned to see a lot but not to reveal it when it would have been very dangerous to do so (such as during the Beijing anti-Japanese student protest where she was called on to make a statement).
Ultimately, the research by Kenko gives us even more evidence of the fact that Yoshiko had to balance much more complexity than her memoirs reveal. I don't use words such as "negotiate" or "agency" to describe this because it would be a misuse of English to do so.
:to be cont'd:
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