Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations visits Tokyo to demand Japan’s participation in TPNW, relief for black rain victims
Jun. 11, 2022
by Junya Kuchimoto, Staff Writer
On June 10, members of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo) took action in the national Diet building in Tokyo, demanding that members of the Diet, Japan’s parliamentary body, and the national government sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) as well as provide extensive relief to victims of the “black rain” that fell after the atomic bomb was dropped by the United States. Citing the advancing age of A-bomb survivors, 55 A-bomb survivors and second-generation A-bomb survivors from 13 prefectural branches of the Nihon Hidankyo organization, including Hiroshima and Nagasaki, called for swift action.
Toshiyuki Mimaki, 80, chair of the Hiroshima Prefectural Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Hiroshima Hidankyo), and Satoshi Tanaka, 78, a director of the organization, visited the offices of ten people, including Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who represents Hiroshima Prefecture’s District No. 1, and Minoru Terada, a special assistant in Prime Minister Kishida’s Cabinet who serves as the representative of Hiroshima Prefecture’s District No. 5. The Hiroshima Hidankyo representatives handed to Diet members’ assistants lists of signatures calling on the national government to join the TPNW. In an interview, Mr. Mimaki remarked, “I hope the prime minister from the A-bombed city will make the decision to participate in the treaty.”
In an effort to seek relief for black rain victims, the Hiroshima Hidankyo members submitted to the person in charge of the issue at the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare a written request for revision of the new guidelines that the national government initiated in April related to recognition of A-bomb survivor status. The request called on the government to eliminate the requirement for 11 diseases such as cancer before A-bomb survivor status is recognized and to provide relief to an expanded number of black rain victims. The person in charge reiterated the government’s negative stance. “The requirement was established based on a statement made by former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga [in July last year].”
(Originally published on June 11, 2022)
On June 10, members of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo) took action in the national Diet building in Tokyo, demanding that members of the Diet, Japan’s parliamentary body, and the national government sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) as well as provide extensive relief to victims of the “black rain” that fell after the atomic bomb was dropped by the United States. Citing the advancing age of A-bomb survivors, 55 A-bomb survivors and second-generation A-bomb survivors from 13 prefectural branches of the Nihon Hidankyo organization, including Hiroshima and Nagasaki, called for swift action.
Toshiyuki Mimaki, 80, chair of the Hiroshima Prefectural Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Hiroshima Hidankyo), and Satoshi Tanaka, 78, a director of the organization, visited the offices of ten people, including Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, who represents Hiroshima Prefecture’s District No. 1, and Minoru Terada, a special assistant in Prime Minister Kishida’s Cabinet who serves as the representative of Hiroshima Prefecture’s District No. 5. The Hiroshima Hidankyo representatives handed to Diet members’ assistants lists of signatures calling on the national government to join the TPNW. In an interview, Mr. Mimaki remarked, “I hope the prime minister from the A-bombed city will make the decision to participate in the treaty.”
In an effort to seek relief for black rain victims, the Hiroshima Hidankyo members submitted to the person in charge of the issue at the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare a written request for revision of the new guidelines that the national government initiated in April related to recognition of A-bomb survivor status. The request called on the government to eliminate the requirement for 11 diseases such as cancer before A-bomb survivor status is recognized and to provide relief to an expanded number of black rain victims. The person in charge reiterated the government’s negative stance. “The requirement was established based on a statement made by former Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga [in July last year].”
(Originally published on June 11, 2022)
