MIYAJIMA Seiichiro. From "Yamagatashijo no Jinbutsu"

The Proposal for Drafting a Constitution (Rikkokukengi) was a written proposal submitted by the Sain (Left Board) legislator (shogikan) MIYAJIMA Seiichiro in 1872 (Meiji 5). It spoke of the importance of drafting a national constitution as the basic law spelling out the rights and duties of the people vis-á-vis the government. It proposed the provisional establishment of a national assembly as a new legislative institution composed of ministerial and prefectural officials. In response to that proposal, deliberations began in the Sain aiming at drafting a national constitution and establishing an assembly. While those deliberations broke off on account of political conflicts, they bear great significance as the first attempt by the Japanese government to draft a national constitution.

The Origins of the Compilation of the National Constitution (Kokken Hensan Kigen), written by MIYAJIMA amidst the mounting movement to set up a national assembly, was submitted to IWAKURA Tomomi in 1881 (Meiji 14). It gives an overview of the developments surrounding the drafting of the national constitution, focusing on activities that took place in the Sain.