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International peace NGO “Friendship Force” holds world conference in Hiroshima

by Daisuke Yamamoto, Staff Writer

The Friendship Force, an NGO headquartered in the U.S. city of Atlanta which seeks to strengthen peace in the world through international exchange, opened its world conference at the International Conference Center Hiroshima on October 31. Through November 2, a total of 370 people, from 22 nations and regions, will learn about Japanese culture and the history of Hiroshima.

On the first day, many participants took part in workshops involving the tea ceremony, calligraphy, and origami paper folding. Sally Coyle, 72, a resident of Chicago, tried wearing a kimono, and remarked, “When I put on a kimono, I get a sense of what it’s like to be a Japanese woman.”

About 30 programs will be held during the three-day event. With November 1 designated as Hiroshima Day, the participants will visit Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum and listen to the account of an A-bomb survivor.

The Friendship Force was founded in 1977 and currently has a membership of some 18,000 people in 60 countries and regions. Following the world conference held in the city of Niigata in 1992, this is the second world conference to be held in Japan.

(Originally published on November 1, 2012)

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