Chiba Masato

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The Honourable
Chiba Masato
政藤千葉
Chiba Masato.png
Masato in 1906
Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Gandoor
In office
12 October 1904 – 14 October 1910
Preceded byPosition Established
Succeeded byRobert S. Stevenson
Leader of the Gandoor Communist Party
In office
7 March 1892 – 11 June 1907
Preceded byWilliam Sherman
Succeeded byRobert S. Stevenson
Revolutionary Leader of Gandoor
In office
2 September 1902 – 12 October 1904
Preceded byPosition Established
Succeeded byPosition Abolished
Personal details
Born17 April 1856
Jun-Tun, Nzardom of Gandoor
Died8 January 1935 (aged 78)
Gandoor City, Gandoor City Capital District, Gandoor
Resting placeMasato Family Grave
Jun-Tun, Freena Yon
Political partyGandoor Communist Party
Spouse(s)Megumi Masato (1879 - 1935, his death)
ChildrenKenji Masato (son)
ParentsHideyoshi Masato (father)
Yukiko Masato (mother)

Chiba Masato (政藤千葉, Masatō Chiba; 17 April 1856 - 8 January 1935) was the first Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Gandoor from 1904 to 1910. Prior to being Prime Minister, he was the Revolutionary Leader of Gandoor following the dissolution of the monarchy in 1902.

Biography

Masato was born in Jun-Tun, Nzardgrad of Gandoor to Hideyoshi (1828 - 1902) and Yukiko (1831 - 1918) Masato; Japanese immigrants who had only moved to Gandoor during the 'First Wave of Japanese Immigration' in 1855.

During his childhood, anti-foreign sentiment amongst the white majority was at an all-time high and at the age of 16 in 1872, Masato and eight other Japanese-Gandoorese would be forced to stop attending school following the passage of a law in Jun-Tun forbidding the public education of 'Gandoorese of non-European ancestry'. Despite being forced out of school, he would continue his education in secret by borrowing schoolbooks from one of his white friends from school.

Masato's wife, Megumi Takahashi (1856 - 1938), was one of the other Japanese-Gandoorese forced out of school. They would marry in 1879, both at age 23, and have one son, Kenji Masato (1882 - 1966).

Political Career

At the age of 29, Masato would join the Gandoor Communist Party, inspired by their ideal of overthrowing the monarchy and establishing a new state where all people would be treated equally. He would quickly rise through the ranks of the party and became leader of the party at age 36. Masato would use his own personal views of non-violence and pacifism to transform the Gandoor Communist Party from a party which advocated violent revolution against the monarchy to one which advocated peaceful revolution to transition Gandoor to a democratic form of government.

In 1900, the Gandoor Revolution, led by Masato and the Communist Party, would officially begin and would last until 1902. On 9 September 1902, Nzard William II would officially abdicate and dissolve the throne of the Nzardom of Gandoor, transferring all control of Gandoor to a revolutionary government led by Masato.

On 9 July 1904, the first elections for the Forum of the Democratic Republic Gandoor occurred and the Gandoor Communist Party won 513 seats against the New Democratic Party's 487 seats and on 12 October 1904, Chiba Masato was officially appointed as the first Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Gandoor.

During his six years as Prime Minister, Masato would sign legislation declaring that voting rights would be granted to all citizens of Gandoor aged 25 or older, officially granting women the vote, and legislation prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, sex, and religious belief (or lack thereof). This was the first anti-discrimination law passed by the new government and would pave the way for future such laws.

In early 1907, Masato announced that he would be stepping down from the position of Leader of the Gandoor Communist Party later in the year and would therefore not be seeking reelection come 1910. Later that year, Robert S. Stevenson would succeed him as party leader and, in 1910, would succeed him as Gandoor's second Prime Minister.

Post-Political Life

After leaving office, Masato would continue to support equal rights for all and would champion for the decriminalization of homosexuality and the outlawing of discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, primarily because several of his close friends were either homosexual or bisexual. While he would live to see homosexuality being decriminalized in 1919, it would not be until 1967 that discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation would be outlawed in Gandoor.

In 1927, at the age of 71, Masato would retire from public life and spend the rest of his days living in his apartment in Gandoor City with his wife.

Illness and Death

In late December 1934, Masato's wife would announce that he was suffering from pneumonia and, on 8 January 1935, he would pass away at the age of 78 due to his illness. Two days after the announcement of his death, on 10 January 1935, Prime Minister Stevenson would declare a National Week of Mourning for the 'Father of Modern Gandoor'. Following a state funeral in his honour, Masato's remains were cremated and placed in his family grave, alongside the ashes of his mother and father.

Legacy

While his successor is often regarded as the 'true' Father of Modern Gandoor, Masato's influence cannot be understated. Following his death, there was a campaign to declare his birthday of 17 April as a national holiday in remembrance of him. There are twenty-three cities, towns, and villages named after him across Gandoor; the largest of which, Masatograd, has a population of over 1.3 million as of 2025. In addition, there are numerous streets named after him in cities, numerous schools (it is commonly joked that everyone in Gandoor has gone to a school named after him), and over one thousand statues of him nationwide.