On TPNW’s entry into force, Hiroshima citizens and A-bomb survivors renew their resolve and vow to act for nuclear abolition
Jan. 23, 2021
by Tsuyoshi Kubota, Staff Writer
On January 22, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), an agreement that completely bans the use and development of nuclear weapons, came into force by ratifying nations. On that day, A-bomb survivors and members of the public gathered in the A-bombed city of Hiroshima and renewed their vow to ensure that the TPNW leads to elimination of nuclear weapons. It has been 75 years and five months since the U.S. military dropped the atomic bombs. Can this international framework—which has finally appeared to define nuclear arms as inhumane weapons—be made effective by involving nuclear nations? Participants at the gathering seared into their minds anew the hopes and role of the A-bombed city.
In front of the A-bomb Dome in Hiroshima’s Naka Ward, citizens groups held an event commemorating the TPNW’s entry into force. Participants lit candles laid out in the shape of different slogans such as “NO NUKES FUTURE.” They also announced a statement that declared, “Nuclear weapons are now banned by international law. A battle has begun between humanity and nuclear weapons.”
In front of the Children’s Peace Monument near the A-bomb Dome, children from Hiroshima performed a peace-themed play with no audience due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The performers expressed their determination to continue carrying on the wishes of A-bomb survivors, delivering the message of their hope to help build a peaceful world.
Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui held a press conference at Hiroshima City Hall, where he conveyed a message to the many A-bomb survivors who backed establishment of the treaty. Mr. Matsui said, “I want to show my respect to the A-bomb survivors who continued to argue that nuclear weapons are an absolute evil that slaughter innocents.” Hiroshima Governor Hidehiko Yuzaki stressed that Hiroshima Prefecture would strengthen its efforts to propose policies based on a security framework that does not rely on nuclear deterrence.
Sunao Tsuboi, 95, chair of the Hiroshima Prefectural Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Hiroshima Prefectural Hidankyo) and co-chairperson of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo), released a statement demanding that Japan’s national government join the TPNW. “The suffering we experienced should never be repeated. A-bomb survivors desperately hope that nuclear weapons are eliminated from this world. Never give up,” said Mr. Tsuboi.
Non-nuclear nations such as Austria and Mexico took the lead role in the debates in the run-up to establishment of the TPNW. In July 2017, the treaty was adopted at the United Nations with 122 nations and regions voting in favor. Nuclear superpowers such as the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, and China, as well as Japan and South Korea, countries that rely on the U.S. nuclear umbrella, have yet to ratify the TPNW.
The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), a nongovernmental organization that promoted the establishment of TPNW and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017, has adopted a campaign policy based on which the number of nations and regions ratifying the TPNW will be nearly doubled from the current 51 to 100, a majority of UN member nations, within a span of three years.
The TPNW also prohibits the threat of use of nuclear weapons. Concrete measures to verify the progress made by countries toward nuclear abolition will be determined at meetings of the State Parties to be held within a year after the treaty’s effectuation. The first meeting is expected to take place in Vienna, Austria’s capital city, around the end of this year.
Keywords
Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW)
The first-ever international treaty, consisting of 20 articles, that completely prohibits the development, testing, possession, use, and threat of use of nuclear weapons. The treaty’s preamble expresses its mindfulness regarding the unacceptable suffering and harm caused to the victims (hibakusha) by the use of nuclear weapons. The TPNW was adopted at the United Nations with 122 nations and regions voting in favor in July 2017, and its signing and ratification began in September 2017. On October 24, 2020, the number of nations and regions ratifying the treaty reached 50, the number required to effectuate the treaty. Then, 90 days later, on January 22, 2021, the treaty entered into force. Nuclear nations such as the United States and Russia are opposed to the treaty itself. To date, 51 nations and regions have ratified the TPNW.
(Originally published on January 23, 2021)
On January 22, the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW), an agreement that completely bans the use and development of nuclear weapons, came into force by ratifying nations. On that day, A-bomb survivors and members of the public gathered in the A-bombed city of Hiroshima and renewed their vow to ensure that the TPNW leads to elimination of nuclear weapons. It has been 75 years and five months since the U.S. military dropped the atomic bombs. Can this international framework—which has finally appeared to define nuclear arms as inhumane weapons—be made effective by involving nuclear nations? Participants at the gathering seared into their minds anew the hopes and role of the A-bombed city.
In front of the A-bomb Dome in Hiroshima’s Naka Ward, citizens groups held an event commemorating the TPNW’s entry into force. Participants lit candles laid out in the shape of different slogans such as “NO NUKES FUTURE.” They also announced a statement that declared, “Nuclear weapons are now banned by international law. A battle has begun between humanity and nuclear weapons.”
In front of the Children’s Peace Monument near the A-bomb Dome, children from Hiroshima performed a peace-themed play with no audience due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The performers expressed their determination to continue carrying on the wishes of A-bomb survivors, delivering the message of their hope to help build a peaceful world.
Hiroshima Mayor Kazumi Matsui held a press conference at Hiroshima City Hall, where he conveyed a message to the many A-bomb survivors who backed establishment of the treaty. Mr. Matsui said, “I want to show my respect to the A-bomb survivors who continued to argue that nuclear weapons are an absolute evil that slaughter innocents.” Hiroshima Governor Hidehiko Yuzaki stressed that Hiroshima Prefecture would strengthen its efforts to propose policies based on a security framework that does not rely on nuclear deterrence.
Sunao Tsuboi, 95, chair of the Hiroshima Prefectural Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Hiroshima Prefectural Hidankyo) and co-chairperson of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo), released a statement demanding that Japan’s national government join the TPNW. “The suffering we experienced should never be repeated. A-bomb survivors desperately hope that nuclear weapons are eliminated from this world. Never give up,” said Mr. Tsuboi.
Non-nuclear nations such as Austria and Mexico took the lead role in the debates in the run-up to establishment of the TPNW. In July 2017, the treaty was adopted at the United Nations with 122 nations and regions voting in favor. Nuclear superpowers such as the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Russia, and China, as well as Japan and South Korea, countries that rely on the U.S. nuclear umbrella, have yet to ratify the TPNW.
The International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), a nongovernmental organization that promoted the establishment of TPNW and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2017, has adopted a campaign policy based on which the number of nations and regions ratifying the TPNW will be nearly doubled from the current 51 to 100, a majority of UN member nations, within a span of three years.
The TPNW also prohibits the threat of use of nuclear weapons. Concrete measures to verify the progress made by countries toward nuclear abolition will be determined at meetings of the State Parties to be held within a year after the treaty’s effectuation. The first meeting is expected to take place in Vienna, Austria’s capital city, around the end of this year.
Keywords
Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW)
The first-ever international treaty, consisting of 20 articles, that completely prohibits the development, testing, possession, use, and threat of use of nuclear weapons. The treaty’s preamble expresses its mindfulness regarding the unacceptable suffering and harm caused to the victims (hibakusha) by the use of nuclear weapons. The TPNW was adopted at the United Nations with 122 nations and regions voting in favor in July 2017, and its signing and ratification began in September 2017. On October 24, 2020, the number of nations and regions ratifying the treaty reached 50, the number required to effectuate the treaty. Then, 90 days later, on January 22, 2021, the treaty entered into force. Nuclear nations such as the United States and Russia are opposed to the treaty itself. To date, 51 nations and regions have ratified the TPNW.
(Originally published on January 23, 2021)
