Former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher died on April 8 at 87. I adored the way she spoke the English language, her manner of speech marked by a precise punctuation of her phrases, always reverberating very pleasantly in my ears. It was electrifying to see her quick witted responses to questions from the opposition during parliamentary debates. Her words were all the more powerful because they were founded on logic, a profound conviction, and a burning passion.
　　　Her many accomplishments as head of the Conservative Party (1975-1990) and prime minister (1979-1990) truly deserve respect. She had a remarkably comprehensive view of events and happenings. She came out with a succession of fundamental policies by analyzing matters on the basis of their historical implications, and how they specifically affected the nitty-gritty of the international situation at that time. She also knew very well that, to restructure Britain’s national foundation solidly, what was most absolutely needed was the will and resolve of the British people and the politicians who would guide them.
　　　At the time that the Tories retook the reins of government from the Labor Party, it was widely thought that British influence would continue to decline for the foreseeable future. Although Britain was positioned as a seriously weakened second-tier nation then, Mrs. Thatcher explains her state of mind at the time of her inauguration as prime minister as follows:
　　　 “Chatam [William Pitt the Elder] famously remarked: ‘I know that I can save this country and that no one else can.’ It would have been presumptuous of me to have compared myself to Chatham. But if I am honest, I must admit that my exhilaration came from a similar inner conviction.” (Margaret Thatcher: The Downing Street Years, HarperCollins Publishers, London; 1993)
　　　And what an inner conviction that was! I believe this was more than mere self-confidence on the part of Mrs. Thatcher, undoubtedly reflecting a fierce determination to go so far as to risk her life to pursue a career ordained by providence. Her words indicate an unyielding belief in herself as one destined to carry Britain’s destinies on her shoulders. There is a palpable sense of courage and an exciting anticipation of things to come.
　　　Going into politics in 1959, Mrs. Thatcher spent the ensuing 20 years observing the mistakes of her party. In a Britain which had been led into socialism by the Labor Party, the Conservatives when in office during those years introduced policies that were in many ways even more socialist, promoting “big government.” Such pandering to popular tastes only worsened Britain’s problems, spreading the so-called “English disease,” rather than resolving the problems of the day. Instead of pushing hard to implement its big ideals, the Conservative Party ended up seeing most of its policies fail as a result of making repeated “concessions to reality.” Mrs. Thatcher was keenly aware of this.

Qualifications for a Political Leader

　　　For four years leading up to the Conservatives’ regaining power, Mrs. Thatcher crisscrossed Britain as a member of the opposition party and spared no effort in listening to the opinions of voters, which made her realize that her fellow-countrymen “hated socialistic values” and “were more ready than many of my parliamentary colleagues to support painful measures to reverse (Britain’s) decline.” She amplifies this point by adding:
　　　“We would incur more odium, I believed, by reneging on our promises of radical conservatism with a U-turn than by pressing firmly ahead through whatever attacks the socialists hurled against us.”
　　　At the end of 1979, when Thatcher assumed the premiership, the Soviet army invaded Afghanistan. It was a dramatic year in which the world witnessed a stunning turn of events, with President Jimmy Carter in effect admitting that his policy of trust and appeasement toward the Soviet Union had been wrong. President Carter failed to come to grips with the true nature of Moscow’s single-party dictatorship and socialism under which decisions are made with no regard for the opinion of the people. Mr. Thatcher was clear in her feelings that there was a fundamental difference of nature between the socialistic Soviet state and democratic states: “…ultimately, our two opposing systems were incompatible – though, because both sides possessed the means of nuclear destruction, we had to make the adjustments and compromises to live together.”
　　　This means that for the head of a state to have any illusions about a communist or socialist state is tantamount to failing his nation – a viewpoint that would seem to well apply to our dealings with China today.
　　　Mrs. Thatcher, who went on to become a powerful leader of the international community, then caught in the middle of the cold war, was at the helm of the British forces that fought the Fauklands War (April-June, 1982) – a war depicted very realistically in the 2011 movie, The Iron Lady.
　　　In one scene Thatcher is shown sticking to her principles despite the intense pressures of the moment. The British Defense Ministry came up with an analysis that the Faukland Islands cannot be regained once they have been lost. Mrs. Thatcher, however, steadfastly refutes this assertion, saying: “Those islands must be retaken.”
Prime Minister Thatcher fought with an “iron will,” eventually deploying more than 100 ships, including commercial vessels, and 25,000 troops. It can rightfully be termed as an all-out war on the part of Britain, its victory significantly changing its standing in the international community, as it managed to demonstrate a strong national will – a will that had long been thought lost. Britain thus proved through its actions that it still was a big power sustained by pride, fiercely refusing to accept its position as a nation in decline.

Spirit of Sovereign Independence

　　　Of course, the victory in the Fauklands War alone did not contribute to the rejuvenation of a nation that had suffered for too long from the malaise of the “British disease.” Prior to the war, the Thatcher administration had already implemented its program of national revitalization, to which the Fauklands dispute gave significant additional momentum.
　　　How, then, did Britain’s rejuvenation materialize? To explain, Mrs. Thatcher writes that she had “grown up in a household that was neither poor nor rich” and her family members had to “economize each day in order to enjoy the occasional luxury,” noting that in her family one’s life, pleasure, and affluence began with thinking out and cutting a path on one’s own. Her father, who ran a small grocery shop, apparently liked to “connect the progress of our corner shop with the great complex romance of international trade…” The lesson she got from her father was that the economy which supported the lives of average citizens was linked closely with the world and that Britain needed a free market that had to be opened wide to international trade.
　　　Mrs. Thatcher carried out an education reform honoring the spirit of independence in an effort to replace an emphasis on socialistic values that made the people of Britain overly dependent on the government and put excessive emphasis on welfare. Special efforts were made to enhance history education aimed at teaching what manner of people the British were and what constituted the nation’s pride.
　　　After implementing a host of policies that give today’s Japan much food for thought, Mrs. Thatcher visited Japan at least three times in the 1990s after retiring as prime minister. Twice I had the great honor and pleasure of meeting her at seminars, once in 1995 and again in 1997. On both occasions a meal followed.
　　　Far from being the “Iron Lady,” she struck me as an extremely elegant lady with a congenial smile; equally impressive was the serious look on her face as she listened attentively to remarks by others. When she and I stood side by side for a photo session, a large ornamental button fell off her dress and landed on the floor. The next instance, she quite nonchalantly covered the button-less spot on her dress with a small silver handbag, looked towards me, and smiled radiantly. It truly was a charming smile.

(Translated from “Renaissance Japan” column no. 554 in the April 18, 2013 issue of The Weekly Shincho)