A-bomb survivor group requests that national government “explain TPNW significance” at NPT Review Conference Preparatory Committee
Jul. 19, 2023
by Koji Higuchi, Staff Writer
On July 18, the Japan NGO Network for Nuclear Weapons Abolition, an organization comprised of A-bomb survivors’ associations and non-governmental organizations, requested that Japan’s national government explain the significance of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) at the first Preparatory Committee for the Review Conference of the Parties to the Nuclear Non-Nuclear Proliferation Treaty (NPT), a meeting set to begin in Vienna, Austria at the end of this month. Members of the Tokyo-based NGO network pressed Japan’s national government, which has distanced itself from the TPNW, to change policy. “If [the attitude of] Japan changes, the world will change,” said the network.
Ten people, including the network co-chairs, paid a visit to Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) to hand the written request in person to Mitsuko Hayashi, deputy director-general and deputy assistant minister of disarmament at MOFA’s Non-Proliferation and Science Department. Masako Wada, 79, assistant secretary general of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo) who is a survivor of the Nagasaki atomic bombing, said, “The door [to the abolition of nuclear weapons] does not open easily” as she called for Japan’s participation in the TPNW in what would mark a significant step forward for the treaty.
The members also urged the government to pursue negotiations on nuclear disarmament, as mandated by NPT’s Article VI, and to respect the agreement reached at the 2010 conference, which clearly addressed the inhumanity of nuclear weapons. At a news conference after meeting with ministry officials, Akira Kawasaki, co-chair of the NGO Peace Boat, told reporters, “The national government must recognize that nuclear disarmament is a legal obligation.”
At the same news conference, Foreign Affairs Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi emphasized the importance of the Preparatory Committee for the NPT Review Conference. “We hope to enhance international momentum [in the direction of nuclear disarmament] by strengthening realistic and practical efforts,” said Mr. Hayashi.
(Originally published on July 19, 2023)
On July 18, the Japan NGO Network for Nuclear Weapons Abolition, an organization comprised of A-bomb survivors’ associations and non-governmental organizations, requested that Japan’s national government explain the significance of the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW) at the first Preparatory Committee for the Review Conference of the Parties to the Nuclear Non-Nuclear Proliferation Treaty (NPT), a meeting set to begin in Vienna, Austria at the end of this month. Members of the Tokyo-based NGO network pressed Japan’s national government, which has distanced itself from the TPNW, to change policy. “If [the attitude of] Japan changes, the world will change,” said the network.
Ten people, including the network co-chairs, paid a visit to Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) to hand the written request in person to Mitsuko Hayashi, deputy director-general and deputy assistant minister of disarmament at MOFA’s Non-Proliferation and Science Department. Masako Wada, 79, assistant secretary general of the Japan Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Sufferers Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo) who is a survivor of the Nagasaki atomic bombing, said, “The door [to the abolition of nuclear weapons] does not open easily” as she called for Japan’s participation in the TPNW in what would mark a significant step forward for the treaty.
The members also urged the government to pursue negotiations on nuclear disarmament, as mandated by NPT’s Article VI, and to respect the agreement reached at the 2010 conference, which clearly addressed the inhumanity of nuclear weapons. At a news conference after meeting with ministry officials, Akira Kawasaki, co-chair of the NGO Peace Boat, told reporters, “The national government must recognize that nuclear disarmament is a legal obligation.”
At the same news conference, Foreign Affairs Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi emphasized the importance of the Preparatory Committee for the NPT Review Conference. “We hope to enhance international momentum [in the direction of nuclear disarmament] by strengthening realistic and practical efforts,” said Mr. Hayashi.
(Originally published on July 19, 2023)
