Japan Scout Jamboree participants learn reality of A-bomb destruction
Aug. 6, 2013
by Aya Kano and Yuichi Ishii, Staff Writers
The Hiroshima Peace Program was held in downtown Hiroshima on August 3, bringing together teens from different parts of the world. The program is part of the 16th Japan Scout Jamboree, now taking place in Yamaguchi Prefecture. About 4,000 students from 16 countries and regions, from the sixth grade of elementary school through high school, visited Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park to learn about the preciousness of peace.
During their tour of Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, they looked closely at a panoramic model that depicts the devastated city after the atomic bombing and the charred personal belongings left behind by victims of the blast. The scouts then moved to the Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims, where they read aloud poems written by survivors. Under the instruction of a volunteer at the hall, they read a poem in unison that was written by a girl who had experienced the atomic bombing when she was three years old. The participants from overseas read the poem in English.
Tatsuki Goda, 15, from Hachioji, Tokyo, said, “We need to learn about the horror of the atomic bombings to preserve peace. I will encourage my friends and family members to visit the A-bombed cities.” Yael Fuch, 16, is a second-year student at a high school in Israel, which is a de facto nuclear weapon state. She said that she was shocked by the destruction caused by the atomic bomb and that nuclear weapons must never be used again.
The participants traveled to Hiroshima in 100 buses from Kirara-hama in Yamaguchi Prefecture, where the jamboree is taking place. Representing prefectures, countries, and regions, 100 scouts will attend the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony on August 6.
(Originally published on August 4, 2013)
The Hiroshima Peace Program was held in downtown Hiroshima on August 3, bringing together teens from different parts of the world. The program is part of the 16th Japan Scout Jamboree, now taking place in Yamaguchi Prefecture. About 4,000 students from 16 countries and regions, from the sixth grade of elementary school through high school, visited Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park to learn about the preciousness of peace.
During their tour of Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, they looked closely at a panoramic model that depicts the devastated city after the atomic bombing and the charred personal belongings left behind by victims of the blast. The scouts then moved to the Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims, where they read aloud poems written by survivors. Under the instruction of a volunteer at the hall, they read a poem in unison that was written by a girl who had experienced the atomic bombing when she was three years old. The participants from overseas read the poem in English.
Tatsuki Goda, 15, from Hachioji, Tokyo, said, “We need to learn about the horror of the atomic bombings to preserve peace. I will encourage my friends and family members to visit the A-bombed cities.” Yael Fuch, 16, is a second-year student at a high school in Israel, which is a de facto nuclear weapon state. She said that she was shocked by the destruction caused by the atomic bomb and that nuclear weapons must never be used again.
The participants traveled to Hiroshima in 100 buses from Kirara-hama in Yamaguchi Prefecture, where the jamboree is taking place. Representing prefectures, countries, and regions, 100 scouts will attend the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Ceremony on August 6.
(Originally published on August 4, 2013)
