Hiroshima City Council sent proposal requesting government to participate in signatory country’s meeting and ratify nuclear ban treaty
Oct. 28, 2020
by Hajime Niiyama, Staff Writer
Following the announcement that the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) will enter into force on January 22 next year, the Hiroshima City Council (total number of council seats: 54) unanimously approved a proposal that requests the Japanese government join the treaty and participate in the meetings of States Parties, at a plenary session of an extraordinary meeting held on October 27. The council also requested for the first time that the government encourage the United Nations to hold the meeting in Hiroshima, a city attacked with the atomic bomb. The proposals were sent to Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, and others.
The proposal was jointly made by all nine groups of the council. Council members called for early signature and ratification of the treaty as well as participation in the meetings of States Parties, in which operation of the treaty will be discussed, as an observer, even if Japan has not signed the treaty yet. They also urged the countries that have not ratified the treaty, including the nuclear powers, to join the treaty.
The proposal stressed that the effectuation of the treaty represents the fruits of the desire of the A-bomb survivors, which have moved the international community, and that it is a great step to realize the abolition of nuclear weapons, which has been the earnest desire of Hiroshima citizens. Haruo Yamada, chair of the council, said, “If nuclear powers do not join the treaty, the abolition of nuclear weapons will continue to be difficult. We will persistently appeal for their participation.”
This is the third time that the Hiroshima City Council has passed a proposal regarding the TPNW. In March 2017, the council urged the government to play a leading role in establishing the treaty, and in September that year, it called for the government’s early signature.
According to the Japan Council against Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs, as of October 23, sixteen city and town councils in Hiroshima Prefecture, including the Hiroshima City Council, have adopted similar proposals.
(Originally published on October 28, 2020)
Following the announcement that the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) will enter into force on January 22 next year, the Hiroshima City Council (total number of council seats: 54) unanimously approved a proposal that requests the Japanese government join the treaty and participate in the meetings of States Parties, at a plenary session of an extraordinary meeting held on October 27. The council also requested for the first time that the government encourage the United Nations to hold the meeting in Hiroshima, a city attacked with the atomic bomb. The proposals were sent to Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga, Foreign Minister Toshimitsu Motegi, and others.
The proposal was jointly made by all nine groups of the council. Council members called for early signature and ratification of the treaty as well as participation in the meetings of States Parties, in which operation of the treaty will be discussed, as an observer, even if Japan has not signed the treaty yet. They also urged the countries that have not ratified the treaty, including the nuclear powers, to join the treaty.
The proposal stressed that the effectuation of the treaty represents the fruits of the desire of the A-bomb survivors, which have moved the international community, and that it is a great step to realize the abolition of nuclear weapons, which has been the earnest desire of Hiroshima citizens. Haruo Yamada, chair of the council, said, “If nuclear powers do not join the treaty, the abolition of nuclear weapons will continue to be difficult. We will persistently appeal for their participation.”
This is the third time that the Hiroshima City Council has passed a proposal regarding the TPNW. In March 2017, the council urged the government to play a leading role in establishing the treaty, and in September that year, it called for the government’s early signature.
According to the Japan Council against Atomic and Hydrogen Bombs, as of October 23, sixteen city and town councils in Hiroshima Prefecture, including the Hiroshima City Council, have adopted similar proposals.
(Originally published on October 28, 2020)
