Hiroshima Hidankyo’s guide volunteers protest “shelving” statement as without the consideration of the citizenry
Sep. 29, 2023
by Yu Kawakami, Staff Writer
On September 28, volunteers who serve as guides in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, under the Hiroshima Prefectural Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Hiroshima Hidankyo, chaired by Kunihiko Sakuma), protested a city official’s response during a city council session regarding the sister park agreement between Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Pearl Harbor National Memorial in the United States. The city official had said discussions on U.S. responsibility for the atomic bombing were being shelved. They said, “His response is an aggressive reconciliation policy without considering the citizenry.”
Five guides from the group of peace learning instructors visited City Hall and handed a letter of protest to Masanori Nosaka, head of the city’s Internationalization Promotion Division. Referring to the “shelving” statement on September 21, they wrote, “It appears the city’s decision is an attempt to deprive Peace Memorial Park of the voices that call out the inhumanity of nuclear weapons and the responsibility for the A-bombing.”
One of the guides, Takahiro Tsuji, 63, a former junior high school teacher, requested, “I want the city government to squarely hold the U.S. government responsibile for the A-bombing.” Mr. Nosaka said, “I will share your opinion with the relevant officials.”
(Originally published on September 29, 2023)
On September 28, volunteers who serve as guides in Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, under the Hiroshima Prefectural Confederation of A-bomb Sufferers Organizations (Hiroshima Hidankyo, chaired by Kunihiko Sakuma), protested a city official’s response during a city council session regarding the sister park agreement between Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Pearl Harbor National Memorial in the United States. The city official had said discussions on U.S. responsibility for the atomic bombing were being shelved. They said, “His response is an aggressive reconciliation policy without considering the citizenry.”
Five guides from the group of peace learning instructors visited City Hall and handed a letter of protest to Masanori Nosaka, head of the city’s Internationalization Promotion Division. Referring to the “shelving” statement on September 21, they wrote, “It appears the city’s decision is an attempt to deprive Peace Memorial Park of the voices that call out the inhumanity of nuclear weapons and the responsibility for the A-bombing.”
One of the guides, Takahiro Tsuji, 63, a former junior high school teacher, requested, “I want the city government to squarely hold the U.S. government responsibile for the A-bombing.” Mr. Nosaka said, “I will share your opinion with the relevant officials.”
(Originally published on September 29, 2023)
