President of Switzerland’s Council of States visits Hiroshima, says peace requires efforts
Nov. 5, 2016
by Hiroaki Watanabe, Staff Writer
Raphael Comte, 37, the president of the Council of States of Switzerland, visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park on November 4. After learning about the consequences of the atomic bombing, Mr. Comte commented that there should be no more nuclear attacks and that efforts must be made to prevent nuclear weapons from spreading and realize a more peaceful world.
Guided by Yasuyoshi Komizo, the chairperson of the Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation, Mr. Comte toured the museum and looked intently at a charred lunchbox and other exhibits.
After the tour, he spoke to reporters and explained why Switzerland abstained from a vote on a resolution concerning the start of negotiations for a legal framework to ban nuclear weapons, which was adopted last month at the First Committee of the U.N. General Assembly, which deals with disarmament issues. With friction between the nuclear and non-nuclear states in mind, Mr. Comte said that Switzerland abstained because all nations should gather at the negotiating table and that Switzerland hopes to serve as a mediator between the two sides.
Mr. Comte arrived in Japan on October 30 to meet with the president of Japan’s House of Councilors. This was Mr. Comte’s first visit to Hiroshima. He offered flowers at the Cenotaph for the A-bomb Victims, looked at the A-bomb Dome, listened to the account of an A-bomb survivor, and met with Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui at City Hall.
(Originally published on November 5, 2016)
Raphael Comte, 37, the president of the Council of States of Switzerland, visited the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park on November 4. After learning about the consequences of the atomic bombing, Mr. Comte commented that there should be no more nuclear attacks and that efforts must be made to prevent nuclear weapons from spreading and realize a more peaceful world.
Guided by Yasuyoshi Komizo, the chairperson of the Hiroshima Peace Culture Foundation, Mr. Comte toured the museum and looked intently at a charred lunchbox and other exhibits.
After the tour, he spoke to reporters and explained why Switzerland abstained from a vote on a resolution concerning the start of negotiations for a legal framework to ban nuclear weapons, which was adopted last month at the First Committee of the U.N. General Assembly, which deals with disarmament issues. With friction between the nuclear and non-nuclear states in mind, Mr. Comte said that Switzerland abstained because all nations should gather at the negotiating table and that Switzerland hopes to serve as a mediator between the two sides.
Mr. Comte arrived in Japan on October 30 to meet with the president of Japan’s House of Councilors. This was Mr. Comte’s first visit to Hiroshima. He offered flowers at the Cenotaph for the A-bomb Victims, looked at the A-bomb Dome, listened to the account of an A-bomb survivor, and met with Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui at City Hall.
(Originally published on November 5, 2016)
