Japanese Communist Party Veteran Tetsuzo Fuwa Dies at 95

Dec 31, 2025 | News On Japan

TOKYO - Tetsuzo Fuwa, former chairman of the Japanese Communist Party and a central figure in the party for decades, died on December 30, the party announced. He was 95.

Fuwa was born in Tokyo in 1930 and graduated from the University of Tokyo. After working in the secretariat of the Japan Federation of Steel Workers’ Unions, he won his first seat in the House of Representatives in 1969. The following year, at the age of 40, he became the Communist Party’s secretary-general, earning the nickname “the prince of the Communist Party.”

He went on to become party chairman in 1982 and later served as chairman of the party’s executive committee until 2006, playing a central role as the public face of the party for many years. Known for his deep knowledge of Marxist theory, Fuwa authored numerous books on Marxism and also wrote essays on mountaineering, one of his personal interests.

According to the Japanese Communist Party, Fuwa died of acute heart failure at a hospital in Tokyo on the afternoon of December 30.

Source: TBS

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