Gen. Douglas MacArthur, the Supreme Commander of Allied Powers in occupied Japan, worried that the nation would wage a "new economic aggression" by flooding other Asian markets with cheap products, according to a Swiss document obtained by Kyodo News.
To avoid this aggression, MacArthur emphasized to Camille Gorge, a Swiss minister in Tokyo, that General Headquarters needed to help organize labor unions in Japan. This would lead to higher wages and prices when the country exported products.
The document, a cable from Gorge to the Swiss Foreign Ministry dated Oct. 5, 1945, is one of many telegrams describing the last days of World War II and the early days of the occupation.
MacArthur ordered newly appointed Prime Minister Kijuro Shidehara on Oct. 11 that year to embark on "five major reforms," which included organizing labor unions.