Hiroshima Citizens Affairs Bureau’s director general says, “Neither ignore nor absolve,” clarifying his remarks of “shelving”
Sep. 23, 2023
by Masanori Wada, Staff Writer
In responding to questions in the city council on September 21 about his remarks of shelving discussions about U.S. responsibility for the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima over the sister park agreement between Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Pearl Harbor National Memorial, Shinichiro Murakami, director general of the Citizens Affairs Bureau for the City of Hiroshima, stated on September 22, “I used the expression so citizens would understand it does not intend to hold the United States unaccountable or absolve the United States from responsibility for the atomic bombing.”
On that day, being questioned again about the purport of his remarks of “shelving” during the general questions session of the city council, Mr. Murakami emphasized that he used that phrase to explain the spirit of reconciliation. As for the meaning of the word, he mentioned, “it does not generally renounce the settlement itself of the problem, but rather it means temporarily suspending discussion depending on the circumstances.
In response to the general questions session on September 21, Mr. Murakami replied, “The agreement was concluded aiming at first increasing the momentum among civil society for ensuring nuclear weapons are never used again, setting aside at least for now discussions on the responsibility of the United States for dropping the atomic bomb.” Some A-bomb survivors are calling on the United States to question the responsibility for dropping the atomic bomb and demanding an apology, which has caused ripples created by Mr. Murakami’s remarks to spread.
(Originally published on September 23, 2023)
In responding to questions in the city council on September 21 about his remarks of shelving discussions about U.S. responsibility for the dropping of the atomic bomb on Hiroshima over the sister park agreement between Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park and Pearl Harbor National Memorial, Shinichiro Murakami, director general of the Citizens Affairs Bureau for the City of Hiroshima, stated on September 22, “I used the expression so citizens would understand it does not intend to hold the United States unaccountable or absolve the United States from responsibility for the atomic bombing.”
On that day, being questioned again about the purport of his remarks of “shelving” during the general questions session of the city council, Mr. Murakami emphasized that he used that phrase to explain the spirit of reconciliation. As for the meaning of the word, he mentioned, “it does not generally renounce the settlement itself of the problem, but rather it means temporarily suspending discussion depending on the circumstances.
In response to the general questions session on September 21, Mr. Murakami replied, “The agreement was concluded aiming at first increasing the momentum among civil society for ensuring nuclear weapons are never used again, setting aside at least for now discussions on the responsibility of the United States for dropping the atomic bomb.” Some A-bomb survivors are calling on the United States to question the responsibility for dropping the atomic bomb and demanding an apology, which has caused ripples created by Mr. Murakami’s remarks to spread.
(Originally published on September 23, 2023)
